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005720 MDHIAN 3959
ALLIANCES NEW STRATEGIC CONCEPT. THIS PUBLISHED DOCUMENT SETS OUT CLEARLY THE ROLE WHICH NATO WILL PLAY IN THE FUTURE A DOCUMENT MOREOVER, IN THE PREPARATION OF WHICH ALL NATO ALLIES (INCLUDING FRANCE A POINT WHICH STRIKES ME AS VERY WELCOME) PARTICIPATED FULLY, AND TO WHICH THEY ALL PUT THEIR SIGNATURES.
NATO HAS, ALSO, OVERHAULED ITS MILITARY STRATEGY AND FORCE STRUCTURE TO MEET THE CHANGED STRATEGIC ENVIRONMENT AND THE MORE DIVERSE SET OF RISKS NOW FACING US ALL. CENTRAL TO THIS PROCESS HAS BEEN THE CREATION OF THE ALLIED COMMAND EUROPE RAPID REACTION CORPS, A MULTI NATIONAL FORMATION WITH A MAJOR AND MILITARILY HIGHLY EFFECTIVE EUROPEAN COMPONENT: SO FAR 10 EUROPEAN COUNTRIES ARE PARTICIPATING, AS WELL AS A SUBSTANTIAL US CONTRIBUTION. THE CORPS, OPERATIONAL THIS AUTUMN, WILL PROVIDE NATO WITH A FLEXIBLE MEANS OF RESPONDING QUICKLY AND EFFECTIVELY TO CRISES RANGING FROM INSTABILITY ON ITS BORDERS TO ALL OUT AGRESSION.
THESE DEVELOPMENTS ILLUSTRATE A CONTINUED COMMITMENT BY ALL NATOS 16 MEMBERS TO THE FUTURE OF THE ALLIANCE. THEY EXEMPLIFY THE RESILIENCE OF NATO, ITS ABILITY TO ADAPT ITSELF IN THE FACE OF EVENTS AND ITS VITAL IMPORTANCE TO THE FUTURE OF DEFENCE BOTH EUROPEAN AND TRANS- ATLANTIC.
THE CREATION OF THE NORTH ATLANTIC CO-OPERATION COUNCIL WHICH HELD ITS FIRST MEETING IN BRUSSELS ON 20 DECEMBER, ADDED AN IMPORTANT NEW DIMENSION. NOW IN THIS FORUM THE 16 MEMBERS OF NATO ARE JOINED BY THE COUNTRIES OF THE FORMER WARSAW PACT, (WHICH FINALLY BREATHED ITS LAST IN THE SUMMER OF LAST YEAR) IN A NEW CONSULTATIVE INSTITUTION. NATIONS ONCE RANGED AGAINST EACH OTHER ARE NOW KEEN TO UNDERSTAND AND LEARN FROM EACH OTHER.
ALL THE REPUBLICS OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF INDEPENDENT STATES, THE BALTIC STATES AND THE FIVE EASTERN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES WHICH ONCE BELONGED TO THE WARSAW PACT ARE NOW MEMBERS.
MORE RECENTLY, IN APRIL DEFENCE MINSTERS AND THE CHIEFS OF DEFENCE OF THESE COUNTRIES MET TO EXTEND THE DIALOGUE FURTHER.
THE NATIONS OF CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE CLEARLY SEE NATO AS IMPORTANT AS A BULWARK OF STABILITY IN A CHANGING CONTINENT AND AS A BEACON OF THE DETERMINATION OF WESTERN DEMOCRATIC COUNTIES TO MAINTAIN THE POWER OF FREE DEMOCRATIC VALUES IN EUROPE.
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LET US NOW LOOK SPECIFICALLY AT WESTERN EUROPEAN DEFENCE.
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