Brussels, 03/04/2002 (Agence Europe) - Last week the Dutch army announced that NATO had asked it to command Amber Fox in Macedonia when the German armed forces' mandate expires on 26 June. NATO Secretary General Lord Robertson made the request at the informal meeting of EU defence ministers in Saragossa on 22/23 March (see EUROPE of 25/26 March, p.5).
After 26 June, it is expected that the term of control of NATO's mission will be extended again for another three months (or longer) before any possible mission led by the European Union. Last week, Macedonian officials said it was important to keep an international peace-keeping force in Macedonia under either NATO's or the EU's command. Macedonian defence minister Popovski had a meeting to discuss this issue with his German counterpart Rudolf Scharping.