No.28. (22/10/03)

1. NATO PA TO MEET IN ORLANDO, FLORIDA - NOVEMBER 7 TO 11, 2003

The 49th Annual Session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly (NATO PA) will be held in Orlando, Florida, USA from Friday November 7 to Tuesday November 11.

The session will be held at the Orange County Convention Center (North Complex) and will comprise meetings of the 5 Committees (Civil Dimension of Security; Defence and Security; Economics and Security; Political and Science and Technology) on Saturday and Sunday November 8 and 9 to be followed by a Plenary Session on Tuesday November 11.

The Plenary Session will feature keynote addresses by leading members of the US administration and the NATO Secretary General, Lord George Robertson and also debate a series of Resolutions submitted by the Committees on key Alliance issues such as the threat from weapons of mass destruction (wmd), NATO's role in Afghanistan and the Balkans, NATO reform, the forthcoming enlargement of NATO, the effect on US-European relations of the Iraq conflict, etc.

The Orlando Session will be attended by 300 (approx.) legislators from the 19 NATO member states and the 20 associate member states.

2. Securing peace: expert conference examines past lessons as NATO looks to future (www.nato-pa.int)

Effective crisis management requires transatlantic unity, political vision and sufficient military power said Lord Robertson at a conference on NATO's role in crisis management in Brussels, 16 October.

The Secretary General delivered the keynote address at the NATO-sponsored conference, which brought together prominent experts to discuss the Alliance's role in crisis management as it takes on new missions.

"Over the course of this year, NATO's evolution has made a quantum leap. By taking the lead in ISAF in Afghanistan, and by supporting Poland in post-Saddam Iraq, the Alliance has taken up new security roles well beyond the Euro-Atlantic area," Lord Robertson said explaining the timeliness of the conference.

Speakers included Carl Bildt, the former Special Envoy of the UN Secretary General to the Balkans and former High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mr. Gareth Evans, President of the International Crisis Group and former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Australia, and Boris Tadic, the Minister of Defence of Serbia and Montenegro

Lessons from the past, for the future One of the most visible changes in NATO's activities since the end of the Cold War has been its involvement in ending conflict, restoring peace and building stability in crisis regions.

The conference began with a discussion of lessons learned from the Alliance's involvement in the Balkans and how these could be applied to NATO's new missions. This included both the civilian aspects and challenges of 'winning the peace' and rebuilding failed states after a conflict, as well as military responses to crises.

A panel also examined the role of public diplomacy in building local and international support for crisis management operations, with speakers emphasizing its importance to the success of operations.

The lessons of the past set the scene for the discussion of the challenges that lie ahead for NATO, in Afghanistan - where NATO took over command of the peacekeeping force - as well as in other crisis areas, where the Alliance might be called on to intervene. The conference, under the patronage of Lord Robertson, was organized by NATO's Public Diplomacy Division, NATO Parliamentary Assembly and the Geneva Center for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces.

2. NATO launches Response Force (15 October 2003)

AFNORTH HQ, Brunssum - On 15 October, under crisp, cloudless skies, and in front of a large group of international media, SACEUR General James L. Jones presented the first NATO Response Force colours to General Sir Jack Deverell.

"The passing of the colours of the NATO Response Force today marks what I consider to be one of the most important changes in NATO Alliance since the signing of the Washington Treaty over 50 years ago," said Gen JonGen. Jones told the assembled crowd and the 60-man Guard of Honour that the NRF embodies NATO's ongoing transformation and is vital in order to meet the new and very dangerous threats of the 21^st Century that are so different from those of the Cold War era.

"For the first time in its history, the Alliance will have a joint (multi-national) combined air, land, sea and special operations force under a single commander, maintained as a standing rotational force," noted SACEUR.

Gen Deverell, Commander in Chief, Allied Forces North will command the first two rotations of the NRF. NRF 1 and 2 will be prototype forces employed to test and develop the concepts and practices of the Force. "Our task is to pave the way to Full Operational Capability in October 2006," said Gen Deverell. "NRF 1 and 2 will be capable of executing a range of missions such as non-combatant evacuation operations and support for counter-terrorism."

"By the time we pass the baton to our colleagues at Regional Headquarters, AFSOUTH in July 2004, we will have progressed far along the road in terms of doctrine, organization, training, certification procedures and command and control functions," added CINC NORTH.

There will be challenges facing the decision makers of the Alliance. The authority to prepare, train and maintain standing and ready forces as well as the decision to embark on a given mission are issues individual nations debate each day at NATO HQ.

Strategic airlift to move the forces and deployable communications and logistic/life support systems are shortages planners have identified that must be addressed urgently. "It was only 11 months ago on 21 November 2003 at the Prague Summit that the leaders of the NATO nations envisaged a new, revitalized and relevant Alliance," said Gen Deverell, praising the work of the staff who have worked on creating the NRF.

"Today, thanks to your efforts, we have taken a major step forward in creating the expeditionary capability, essential to countering the globalisation of new threats to peace and security."

4. Defence Ministers look at future challenges at Colorado Springs meeting

NATO Ministers of Defence and the 7 invited countries expected to join NATO next year, reviewed the Alliance's transformation in the context of the future security environment at an informal meeting held in Colorado Springs, United States, 8-9 October.

The meeting began with Dynamic Response 07, a crisis management study seminar designed to provide the Ministers, Chiefs of Defence Staff, NATO Ambassadors, and senior Alliance officials with an opportunity to confront realistic scenarios depicting future threats and challenges and to consult on how NATO must transform to be able to respond to even more rapidly to these challenges.

The Ministers then went on to take stock of the Alliance's ongoing transformation, and particularly the implementation of the new NATO Response Force, new military command structure and efforts to improve capabilities. They also discussed NATO's current operations, in Afghanistan and the Balkans.

A key theme was the need to increase the deployability and usability of NATO's forces if the Alliance is to meet future threats and mission demands.

Speaking at press conference Secretary General Lord Robertson stressed that "if operations such as ISAF in Afghanistan are to succeed, we must generate more usable soldiers and have the political will to deploy more of them on multinational operations."

In this context, several NATO member countries signed letters of intent to join German and Spanish-led initiatives to improve NATO's strategic airlift capabilities and establish multinational fleet of air-to-air-refuelling tankers.

Ministers also discussed current planning in NATO on possible options to expand NATO-led International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan.The Ministers also met with Russian Defence Minister Ivanov. Informal meetings of NATO Defence Ministers are held each year in addition to formal meetings held twice a year. Informal meetings have no fixed agenda and no formal decisions are taken; they are an opportunity for ministers to discuss freely key issues on the Alliance's agenda.