NATO HQ 8 Dec . 2005

Press conference by NATO Spokesman, James Appathurai on the Foreign Ministers' Meetings Gentlemen, thank you for coming. I will try to update you quickly on three things. One is the discussions to the extent that I can update you on them... that took place at the dinner last night, the transatlantic dinner. The flavour of the discussion this morning in the working breakfast and the look ahead to the rest of the day for those of you who have not yet been fully briefed on what is to be expected. I was not present, last night, at the transatlantic dinner, so I cannot give you too much detail in terms of the substance of the conversation. But I can tell you this. Secretary Rice led off the dinner with the discussion on the issue of CIA flights. It was a long discussion. The Secretary General, of course, if you ask him, will provide his own comment because he was there, at this press conference at 12:30. But you have seen the commentary from several ministers who were present. Minister Steinmeier, Minister De Gucht, and Minister Bot have all said that they are satisfied with what they have heard. That seems to be the flavour from the meeting and certainly today's discussions. And I'll come to those in a moment. I've concentrated until now purely on NATO business. And we will see how the day goes. In the dinner, I can tell you there was also a discussion of the Balkans, and in particular Kosovo amongst ministers led by High Representative Solana and the Secretary General of NATO spoke of the Balkans but in particular Afghanistan . He reiterated NATO's long-term commitment to Afghanistan . He laid out, briefly, for ministers, of course, they're all familiar with NATO, plans to expand its mission. As you all know, ministers today, probably in the coming hour, will endorse the operational plan that will guide the expansion of NATO's mission. And he looked forward to the London conference and made an appeal to all ministers around the table to ensure that the various organizations which will be present there and major donors at the London conference will also come with a solid contribution to make the Afghanistan 's future. So that NATO is there and NATO will remain with, indeed, a growing presence. But the Alliance cannot do everything that needs to be done to support Afghanistan alone. To be successful, this has to be a comprehensive team effort by NATO, the UN, the EU, G8, the major donors. So that was the Secretary General's appeal at last night's dinner. Let me turn to this morning. This morning's discussions focused on the Middle East . And to put it in its proper framework, of course, NATO has, as you know, outreach programs to North Africa, to Israel , to countries of the Gulf region through the Mediterranean dialogue on one hand and the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative on the other. And NATO has a training program in Iraq which is slated not only to continue but, indeed, to take on some new rules as we look forward. And the Secretary General will speak to that as well. It is in this context of NATO's engagement into the broader Middle East that Allies, this morning, had a discussion, a very wide-ranging, and I have to say in-depth and an interesting discussion on broad trends in the Middle East . They focus very much on the Middle East peace process, and the progress that is being made there. Secretary Rice kicked off the discussion with... her recounting of the role that she played and indeed that all parties played in the opening of the Rafah Crossing. She congratulated the EU on the role that is now playing actively in the region. But Ministers around the table reiterated, of course, the importance of supporting the process, of supporting the development of Palestinian security structures and security agents and overall ensuring that the road map process moves forward. This was, I would say, a shared consensus around the table. They discussed developments in Syria and Lebanon . They discussed developments in Iran, though relatively briefly on the subject of Iran, as I say, not with the role, not with an intention of injecting the Alliance into the Middle East peace process or into the EU3-US discussions on Iran and the nuclear issue, but simply as context that Allies need to share as the Alliance reaches out in partnership and dialogue with countries of North Africa, Israel and the Middle East. That, in essence, was the essence of the discussions this morning. Ministers, now, and literally now, are turning to NATO's operations and missions. And in particular they will begin, I'm quite sure with the discussion of Afghanistan, as those of you who are present at the press conference yesterday downtown remember, NATO ministers will today endorse a revised operational plan that will guide the expansion of NATO's international security assistance force, the NATO led security assistance force in Afghanistan that will take place in the coming year, where NATO will be present in three quarters of the country with several thousand more troops moving South, four provincial reconstruction teams immediately added to the nine that are presently under NATO command.And the Alliance will certainly play a more active role in supporting the Afghan national army, in supporting the Afghan police and in carrying out its mission with more robust forces and more robust rules of engagement in the south. It is a more volatile region. And of course, ministers will look forward, as I mentioned, to the London conference to take place, I understand, in last day of January, the first day of February to put together what I think they're calling a "Kabul compact", an international compact with the Afghan government to guide the long-term international commitment to that country. They will discuss Kosovo, of course, the developments there. NATO is participating in supporting the process that is now moving forward in Kosovo in two main ways, of course with KFOR, the NATO led peacekeeping force which will continue its mission of ensuring safe and secure environment and will meet any attempts to derail the political process through violence with a very stiff response. NATO is also participating through the extended contact group in the political discussions. And I believe there will a meeting of the extended contact group here today at political directors' level on the margin of this meeting, indeed to discuss the security situation in Kosovo and the status talks as they move forward. Ministers will look at the coming end of NATO's support mission, relief mission for Pakistan . For those of you who have not been following NATO everyday, this mission will come to an end at the very end of January, beginning of February, around February first. The Alliance will have transported, and indeed has transported at this point around 2,700 tons of relief supplies to Pakistan , which makes the Alliance the largest air-lifter of supplies to Pakistan . Our engineers are there, our doctors are there now and will remain there for the coming weeks, providing relief support. And when Alliance personnel redeploy, back to Europe, on schedule, some nations - and you will have to discuss with the individual nations themselves, some nations will leave behind equipment: for example, hospital or medical equipment or engineering equipment. I know, for example, that the French government has already left behind a hospital that the Pakistani authorities are now using to treat their injured and ill. And other countries are looking to do the same thing. Finally, I anticipate there will be discussion of Darfur . The Alliance has airlifted into Darfur on request of the African Union, seven battalions of African soldiers and one battalion of police. Despite that, despite the best efforts of the African Union, the situation in Darfur is dire. It is certainly not improving. And Ministers will want to have, I believe, a discussion of the security situation there and how the international community, as a whole, can continue to support as much as possible peace efforts in Darfur . Ministers will then move to EAPC lunch. I might mention, of course, that at 12:30 the Secretary General will be here to give his press conference. He will be immediately followed to the podium at 12:45 by Secretary Rice. So that would be the time, I think, that you would want to... want to be present. They will have a lunch, working lunch, as we've had a ministerial... NATO ministerial working dinner, working breakfast. There will be a working lunch of EAPC countries, Euro-Atlantic Partnership Countries, the 46 countries, NATO and partners, that make up this body. And they will discuss, of course, the various missions and operations to which I referred, when I refer to them as NATO led mission, for example in Afghanistan or in Kosovo, just precisely because our partners are essential, absolutely essential contributors to them. I was recently with the Secretary General in Afghanistan and one could see on the tarmac a Danish plane right next to Swedish, for example, aircraft all of which are contributing to the same mission, under the same command and control arrangement. So it's really one team. And it's absolutely vital that we have the opportunity as a group of 46 countries to talk together on these issues. There will be meeting following that of the NATO-Russia Council, the main deliverable coming out of the NATO-Russia Council. The main deliverable coming out of this NATO-Russia Council will be a pilot project between NATO nations and Russia to help counter the flow of narcotics from Afghanistan . This is a threat, obviously, that faces all of our countries. Ninety percent of the heroin that is produced in the world finds its way... finds its origin today in Afghanistan . So we all have a collective interest in stemming that flow. NATO nations and Russia will work together to provide training to officials in Afghanistan but also in neighbouring countries where they wish to have that training to help to stem that flow, to provide expertise in detecting and preventing the flow of narcotics out of Afghanistan. There will then, finally, be a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine commission. Obviously, NATO and Ukraine have been in an intensive, and indeed formally intensive dialogue since Ukraine has made clear its intention to move closer to NATO and indeed to join eventually NATO. The Alliance is in deep and close and regular partnership with Ukraine to help Ukraine meet the standards of NATO memberships. There will be discussion very much of that of Ukraine 's reform efforts and how the Alliance can help Ukraine meet the standards that it aspires to meet in economic, political and military reform. After the NATO-Russia Council, the Secretary-General will of course make his press conference and then again, together with Minister Tarasyuk after the NATO-Ukraine Commission. I think that's it except...while I remember to tell you that if you're interested after this press conference, we have put together, in fact it was for our internal purposes. But I thought that might be nice you also to see it. And I'm telling you this frankly it is not as propaganda, because we're going to show it to the staff as well. But we made a little video of the Pakistan mission. It doesn't include, I must say, all the various nationalities that have contributed soldiers to this NATO mission because we didn't control the camera. But it is six minutes long. So if you feel like seeing what actually happened in Pakistan , we'll put it up on the screen after this is over to fill a little bit of your time. Questions and answers Q: You just... Sorry, James, you just mentioned that the rules of engagement in Afghanistan would be made more robust, I think, you said. Does that apply to the South only? Does it apply to the whole of Afghanistan ? And does that mean that the rules of engagement that have been enforced so far were not sufficient? And to what extent? And perhaps, you could elaborate about details. What has been changed or is going to be changed then? Appathurai: It's a very good question. The rules of engagement will apply to the entire ISAF mission. They do not differentiate between regions. So they will apply much to the soldiers in the South as they do to the North, in Kabul or in the West anywhere. Of course, it is an imperative in any military mission that there are no weak links, no weak spots, which all NATO soldiers need to have the same capability to defend themselves. But of course, you're all aware that the South is a more volatile environment than the North was and than the West is. And so it is only normal that in looking at the evolution of this mission, the rules of engagement need to be adapted to the environment. So they're adapted in the sense, in the context of the enlargement to the South. But they apply universally. In essence, they will give NATO soldiers the rules, the right to defend themselves robustly. They will not be sent, to quote one unnamed minister who's discussing sending soldiers to the South... they will not be sent with one arm tied behind their back. And that is the basic principle here. There are still under discussion by the Alliance . So I cannot go into detail, into each one because they may be modified in the coming days. And they are not necessary to be agreed at the moment of the operational plan. It's a separate process. But what I can tell you is they will be more robust. NATO soldiers and those working under ISAF will have the rules of engagement they need to defend themselves and defend themselves robustly. Q: Thank you, Mister Spokesman. On the discussions on the Middle East issue, apart from the Rafah, what are the main points they have touched upon? Appathurai: Well, I think, I might have mentioned a few of them. I think the two points that seemed to be most often repeated was the importance of supporting the road plan. And I think this is no surprise to you... in... "en gros". And there was a lot of resonance. And many ministers came back to the importance of supporting the development of effective Palestinian security forces. So that they are able to maintain security in their own area. I think those were the two main areas that were touched on. Q: The Dutch Cabinet may decide tomorrow whether it is going to deploy part of the expansion in Afghanistan . One of the things it is looking forward is more reassurance,... perhaps in the form of a memorandum of understanding on ISAF detention policy. Will such a memorandum or other form of reassurance be forthcoming today? Appathurai: I have heard no discussion to be frank of a specific memorandum of understanding. What I can tell you is that the detention policy for the Alliance is when it comes to ISAF is already enshrined and agreed in the operational plan, and agreed, I might add, by the Dutch government and all 25 of the others. And it is very clear and I think, as I said yesterday, fully meets appropriate international standards. ISAF which has, by the way, never yet detained anyone but may well need to when it moves to the South. ISAF forces can detain individuals for an initial period of six hours, up to a maximum of 96 hours, but up to that maximum requires the highest level authority from Commander ISAF or his delegated subordinate. Each detainee, the International Red Cross or Red Crescent will be notified. So there will be full visibility to international authorities. And at that point, when detention ends, as I say, up to a maximum of 96 hours, detainees will either be released or handed over to the Afghan authorities. So this is a policy that is, I think, as I say, quite clear, quite agreed by all nations. And I obviously cannot speak to what the Dutch Cabinet may or may not have for... Is it a follow-up or...? No then, sorry, we'll have to go to there, then. Q: Can you tell us a little more on yesterday night's discussion on Kosovo if there was... if you know? Appathurai: Well, I can tell you I don't know anymore. So that's the most I could say. I'm sorry. Ministers, of course, wanted to keep this discussion as private as possible. I simply don't know about that discussion. We'll go here then. Q: James, could you give us a flavour of what Secretary Rice told her colleagues about the CIA issue which seems to put the minds at ease as you suggested? Appathurai: Again, I can't give any more of a flavour because I was not informed. So sorry... Q: James, a couple of questions. Following up Mark's, does ISAF have some sort of guarantees from the Afghan authorities that detainees that are handed out will be correctly treated. And on a different subject, given the shortfalls in the African Union's operations in Darfur what options is NATO looking at in terms of improving the situation down there. Would it involve eventually perhaps NATO involvement on the ground? Appathurai: Thank you. I think the point to remember about the Afghans.... And I don't want to prejudice any discussions that might take place between individual nations and Afghanistan . But what is important to remember is that ISAF is operating in Afghanistan . Afghanistan is a sovereign country with its own laws. And so detainees who are detained and then released to Afghan authorities are not being transferred, are not being sent to another country, are not being taken from one jurisdiction to another. They're being handed over to the authorities of their own country that have a democratic process, I might add, and have their own laws. That's the context in which we need to remember this arrangement. When it comes to Darfur, the Alliance is not seeking any role in Darfur . The Allies are concerned, as I think, everyone of us is concerned about the security situation in Darfur . What NATO has done until now has been under the specific request of the African Union with the support of the United Nations and of course in partnership with the EU. If the African Union were to come with another request to the Alliance , something that I'm not in any way leading towards ahead. No information that would happen. Then of course, Allies would discuss it. That goes without saying. But NATO is not seeking now as a result of this discussion anymore active role as it never sought a role in Darfur . Q: Two questions on Middle East . The General Secretary has occasionally spoken out in favour of a NATO mission if conditions are met. First question: Does that play any role in the discussions. And second question: With the progress you mentioned and Mrs. Rice mentioned, has a NATO role, a NATO mission in the Middle East between Israel and Palestine has come close in all? Appathurai: Well, I can answer both of those questions quickly. First, the conditions for those of who don't follow our websites on a day-to-day basis, that the Secretary-General has always that for the Alliance to play an active role in the Middle East peace process he believes that certain conditions would be necessary: one would be a comprehensive agreement; second, a request by all of the relevant parties and third, a support by the United Nations. We are not there yet. Certainly, these conditions are not in place. So there was no discussion in that room of an active. And that answer brings me to the second question. There was no discussion in that room of an active role for NATO in the Middle East process. Indeed, this was very clearly couched in the context of information sharing among ministers who are very much engaged in this, in their various roles to provide context for what is the NATO engagement in the region which is outreach, dialogue and partnership through the MD, the ICI and of course very much the Iraq training mission. The security situation in Iraq affects the entire region. Developments in neighbouring countries obviously affect the security environment in IraQ: Iran and Syria not least. So it is essential context for what we do. But NATO was not discussing this morning any new role for the Alliance . Last question. Q: Sir, speaking about the rules of engagement in the South of Afghanistan, you said that the new ISAF missions would have the means to robustly defend themselves. My question would be: "Will all these forces of defence would be embedded in the mission itself? Or would that be some sort of an outside force in order to protect new ISAF missions?" Appathurai: There's two issues there. And I think it's a very good question. One is that the Alliance will be deploying several thousand more troops into the South to conduct the ISAF mission. And that is to allow the provincial reconstruction teams to do their work in what is obviously a less benign environment. And that means more robust protection. And of course to carry out the secondary role and that is primarily carried out to the PRTs and that is to help extend the authority of the government of Afghanistan . Now, again, NATO's mission will be carried out through the Provincial Reconstruction Teams. But in the South, they will have a lot of forces to protect them and to give them the freedom to move and do what they need to do. There is, of course, a second part to that. And that has been the case all the way through the ISAF mission and that is synergy with Operation Enduring Freedom. There are arrangements in place whereby if ISAF Forces get in real trouble and need in extremis medical evacuation, if ISAF is not able to provide that for itself, and we do, as I say, have significant forces to provide for our own security. But if that is not possible, there are arrangements in place whereby Operation Enduring Freedom can, within its means and capabilities, provide support to ISAF. So there are plenty of forces and arrangements in place to allow for ISAF to carry out its mission in this less benign environment. Thank you very much. I have to return to the meeting. There is a film. No pop corn.