November 21, 2002
Prague, Czech Republic

Prime Minister Jean Chrétien today welcomed the results of the Summit of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which saw a decision to begin the most robust enlargement in the Alliance’s history, as well as an undertaking by NATO to take important steps in its transformation. The Prime Minister made his comments from Prague, Czech Republic.

"Leaders have taken important steps to modernize and adapt NATO to tackle the threats of the new security environment. The sum of our collective power and our entire moral weight is a mighty force that will be brought to bear on those who directly threaten our security," said the Prime Minister. "The addition of seven new members is a major part of this adaptation. Indeed, Canada was one of the earliest supporters of enlargement and we congratulate the seven on this milestone. These countries have demonstrated they are willing and able to share the roles, risks, responsibilities, benefits and burdens of common security and collective defence."

In Prague, leaders of the 19 NATO member countries and most of the 27 member countries of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council met to discuss new members, new relationships and new capabilities. Foreign Affairs Minister Bill Graham and Minister of National Defence John McCallum also participated in the Summit.

Key outcomes of the meeting include:

1. The invitation to seven countries to join the NATO Alliance: Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia. Canada has consistently been one of the strongest proponents of a robust enlargement as a way of extending the Euro-Atlantic zone of stability and security, and of fulfilling a commitment to those countries that have made the difficult transition to democracy. NATO leaders assured current aspirants Albania, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Croatia, as well as future candidates, that the door remains open to further enlargement in the future.
2. The decision to establish a NATO Response Force, which Canada has supported as another important adaptation of NATO’s capabilities. This will enable the alliance to react immediately with effective, tailored forces when required.
3. Political support for the Prague Capabilities Commitment, which aims to modernize NATO’s equipment and resources and make the Alliance more efficient, interoperable, and prepared for new threats to the new security environment. This commitment builds upon previous capabilities initiatives, which Canada has strongly supported.
4. Expression of united support for United Nations Security Council Resolution 1441, signaling to Iraqi President Saddam Hussein that he must seize this opportunity to disarm peacefully and in full and complete compliance with its obligations.
5. The adoption of a package of measures to strengthen NATO’s capacity to defend against new threats, including terrorist attacks involving the use of nuclear, radiological, biological and chemical weapons. The package includes a deployable laboratory, an event response team, disease surveillance and an inventory of defence resources and expertise drawn from member countries. Canadian contributions will include one military member for the NATO response team and one scientist for the deployable lab. Canada will also host the second exercise by these two teams at the live-agent training facility in Suffield, Alberta.
6. The strengthening of NATO’s relationships with partner countries of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council and the Mediterranean Dialogue. In particular, the new NATO-Russian Council, a council of 20 equal partners, offers many important opportunities. In the future, partners will have the opportunity to be involved in joint activities and to help shape decisions on a broader range of security initiatives. These new measures will improve collaboration in crisis situations, to the benefit of Canada and all of its allies who recognize the benefit of a widespread coalition of nations.

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