30 10 2007 Albanian Times: Candidate countries must meet all the conditions if they hope to receive an invitation at NATO's summit in April 2008, Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said during a visit to Bucharest.
Enlargement, developments in the Western Balkans and missile defence will be among the issues on the agenda of NATO's April 2008 summit in Bucharest, NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said in the Romanian capital on Monday (October 29th).
Albania, Croatia and Macedonia have each signed a Membership Action Plan with the Alliance and are hoping to be invited to join the 26-nation pact in the spring. De Hoop Scheffer made it clear Monday, however, that no decision has been taken yet.
"At the moment there is no guarantee that NATO will invite new states, but for sure the meeting will be a successful one, as there will be many important topics on its agenda," he said at a news conference in Bucharest following talks with Romanian President Traian Basescu.
Countries seeking to join NATO need to show very good performance, de Hoop Scheffer stressed, urging candidates to work to implement reforms in military and non-military areas so that they meet the Alliance's strict criteria. The invitation tickets are not "punched" yet, he said.
Regarding the possibility of Ukraine being invited to join NATO, de Hoop Scheffer noted that dialogue with the country had intensified in recent months, but that it would be up to Ukrainians to decide if they want to build closer ties with the Alliance.
"The Ukrainian people will decide what course Ukraine will follow vis-a-vis NATO and vis-a-vis the EU," the NATO chief said.
As for Georgia, reports Monday quoted unnamed diplomats as suggesting its "stalled conflicts" with Russia -- over South Ossetia and Abchasia -- should be resolved first.
The purpose of de Hoop Scheffer's one-day visit to Bucharest was to discuss preparations for the April summit with Basescu and other officials, including Prime Minister Calin Popescu Tariceanu and Foreign Minister Adrian Cioroianu.
Missile defence is another major issue the heads of state and government of the member nations will focus on during the summit.
Addressing Romania's fears that it will be left uncovered by the missile defence system the United States plans to build in Eastern Europe, the NATO chief said that indivisibility of NATO members' security is the basic principle that should govern talks in Bucharest.
"Romania is a NATO member. In NATO, we do not have class A and class B members. All members of NATO, all allies are equal," he told reporters at the news conference with Basescu. He said the planned US missile shield has been the subject of numerous meetings within the Alliance.
The project envisions the deployment of ten ground-based interceptor missiles in Poland and a sophisticated radar system in the Czech Republic. Besides Romania, NATO members Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey will remain outside the protection scope of the US shield.
However, de Hoop Scheffer said, the new NATO defence system should complement the planned US shield.
"All NATO members … enjoy the same degree of protection," he said. "If we discuss missile defence, this means that every single NATO ally will have to enjoy the same protection as every other ally."
The situation in Afghanistan and new threats and challenges, including energy security, will also be discussed at the Bucharest summit. (SETimes)
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