ADDRESS BY PRIME MINISTER JEAN CHRÉTIEN On the Occasion of the North Atlantic Council Summit

November 21, 2002
Prague, Czech Republic

At our last meeting in Rome, we welcomed a new partnership with Russia. It was an historic agreement that ended the last divisions of the Cold War. Here in Prague, NATO will be undergoing the greatest enlargement since its conception. We will prove, as we did in Rome, that we can find new ways of working together to ensure greater peace and prosperity in the Euro-Atlantic region.

Never has that unity been more important than during these troubled times. Our countries face new, chilling threats. We need only think about the terrible events of September 11, the attacks in Bali, and the sinister audiotape message applauding these events.

Terrorism, ladies and gentlemen, is the ultimate wrong. It is an assault against civilized values and requires determined responses by all civilized nations. It has no moral justification or conscience. No right. No reason. It is simply about the taking of innocent life. Faced with this threat, Canadians continue to believe in the importance of multilateral approaches to international issues. Collective action produces greater long term security and is more effective than unilateral action.

In this century, acting collectively is the required response to those who attempt to undermine peace. 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. It was to achieve this goal that NATO was founded in 1949. It is why NATO’s work continues to be relevant and essential.

I am confident that as we look to improve our Alliance, we will find ways to meet our security needs more efficiently and more effectively. With new partnerships and new initiatives, we will find success.

The countries in the Balkans have begun the process of healing largely because of our military presence. Much remains to be done there, make no mistake. Increasing global commitments will make it difficult to continue present military levels in the region. The people there must take ownership of their own recovery – it is the only way to sustain peace. And while we can be proud of what we have achieved thus far, we must continue thinking about future options for that region of the world.

Mr. Secretary General, I congratulate you for prioritizing NATO’s work. With many diverse tasks ahead, this institution must be able to meet the problems of today, while preparing for the challenges of tomorrow. For these reasons, Canada will do its part. We welcome the proposal to develop a rapid response force. And we support the Prague Capabilities Commitment. We must prepare our military forces to meet future threats. Only then can NATO be able to play its full part wherever and whenever it must.

But Canadians recognize that security must go beyond military action. Military action alone cannot find long term solutions. We have learned at our peril that military action is too blunt a tool to solve the problems of a complex world. Failed states – areas essentially ungoverned – provide a breeding ground for terrorists.

Within the Alliance, with Russia, with our partners in the Central Eastern European region and in the Mediterranean region, we should never forget the essentials of peace building. That is why I encourage the expansion of NATO. Bringing new members and our partners closer to the values of human rights, good governance and the rule of law diminishes many of the conditions which create extremism and violence.

Mr. Secretary General, we have discovered many new ways of working in common. New ways of making our seemingly complex world more secure. We all can agree that we have taken enormous strides in recent years. At our next meeting, I look forward to continuing that trend.

Thank you.

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