Brussels, 05/04/2004 (Agence Europe) - On 2 April seven flags of the new Member States of NATO were hoisted during a ceremony at the NATO Headquarters in Brussels, which was organised at a minister of foreign affairs level. This event took place almost 55 years to the day after the signing of the North Atlantic treaty 4 April 1949. NATO has increased from the original 12 countries in the alliance to 26 to almost double that figure and three other countries are waiting to join. The flags of Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania and Slovenia, which formally joined NATO at the White House ceremony on 29 March are now flying alphabetical order (English) over the central lawn in front of the main NATO entrance.
As underlined by the Secretary General of NATO, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer during the first session of the NATO Council with 26 members, "From now on, 26 Allies will be joined in a commitment to defend each others' security and territorial integrity. This is the strongest, most solemn commitment nations can undertake. Our seven new members have shown consistently that they are ready for this commitment. They know, by their own experience, what it means to defend the value that one holds dear. They in turn, can count on the solidarity of he other Allies…the challenges of the new security environment, terrorism, proliferation and failed states, demand such strong solidarity". The Secretary General also declared that the "doors of NATO remain open" and that new members have deservedly become members of NATO following the years of hard work they had put into preparing for accession. The Secretary General also explained that this ought to act as an example to other countries that share the same values and goals and which work will allied countries in view of joining the alliance. The message address by Jaap de Hoop Scheffer is that carrying out reforms "bears fruit".
The current Honorary President of the NATO Council, the Italian Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Franco Frattini said that "Today we celebrate an event that will stand out in the history of the Atlantic Alliance and the history of Europe. At the dawn of a new century, the entry of the seven new members extends the area of stability on our continent. It also confirms that the divisions of the past have been overcome. And it enables us to view the future of Europe with new confidence. "We are encouraged by the fact that now we can also count on your commitment and your contributions. We are sure that the energy that brought you here will be a crucial help as we continue to work together for a peaceful, stable and prosperous future". Mr Frattini also stressed that no country could confront current "complex threats" alone and declared that "we count on the support of our partners from Russia, with whom sine Pratica di Mare NATO has a strategic partnership, to the Mediterranean".
The new countries agree that there should be a NATO operation in Iraq based on a UN resolution and want a greater commitment from the international community in order to help the country get back on its feet. Romanian minister Geoana said that the regime in Iraq had been "more atrocious than that of Ceausescu". The Acting president of the OSCE, Bulgarian minister Passy called on members of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe to work to obtaining greater commitment in Iraq.