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<TITLE>Bulgarian Foreign Minister Nadezhda Mihailova's Address to 15th NATO
Workshop, Vienna, Austria</TITLE>
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CONTENT="Bulgarian Foreign Minister Nadezhda Mihailova's address to XVth NATO Workshop on Political-Military Decision Making in the Hofburg Palace, Vienna, Austria in June, 1998. The NATO Workshop Chairmen were Supreme Allied Commander Europe General Wesley Clark and Dr. Roger Weissinger-Baylon. Bulgarian Foreign Minister Mihailova describes challenges to NATO and Bulgarian's contributions to European Security including the situation in Kosovo.">
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CONTENT="Nadezhda Mihailova, nadezhda mihailova, Bulgaria, NATO, NATO Workshop, NATO expansion, NATO enlargement, Kosovo, Atlantic Alliance, Foreign Minister of Bulgaria, Central Europe, Eastern Europe, SACEUR, General Wesley Clark, Roger Weissinger-Baylon">
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<BODY LINK="0000ff" BGPROPERTIES="FIXED" BGCOLOR="ffffff"><BASEFONT SIZE="3">
<P ALIGN="CENTER"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="6" FACE="Arial">Challenges
to the Alliance and Bulgaria’s <BR> Contributions to Security and Stability</FONT> </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="CENTER"><FONT FACE="Arial"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="4">Bulgarian
Foreign Minister Nadezhda Mihailova</FONT> </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="CENTER"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Arial"><B>CURRENT
AND FUTURE CHALLENGES TO THE ALLIANCE</B> </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3">We have good reason to
believe that the current and unprecedented dynamics of change in the
global geostrategic configuration will be one of the main challenges to
the Atlantic community in the 21st century. The viability of the post-Cold
War transatlantic link will undergo yet another crucial test as it
continues to adapt its present-day Euro-Atlantic security structures to
changing realities. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3">Today NATO’s mission is
no longer defined exclusively by Article 5 threats. Instead, its efforts
to maintain and expand its capabilities are being caused by the
transitional nature of the new international order. This situation,
sometimes described as relative anarchy or chaos, is the result of the
vacuum and the redistribution of power in areas of the world previously
dominated by the Communists. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3">It is only natural that the
Atlantic community, with its well-proven efficiency and ability to act
coherently, is seen as a principal contributor to defining this emerging
new world order. NATO can play an essential role in this work while
remaining loyal to its original vocation: the protection and promotion of
the common values that lie at the heart of the Euro-Atlantic community.
The Alliance’s ability to act in this regard is probably one of the
important factors in the attractiveness of the Alliance to the new
democracies in Central and Eastern Europe. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3">But in order to do its work,
it is important that the Alliance complete an early and successful
internal adaptation. We are confident that NATO will maintain its military
effectiveness for the full range of new and old missions by building both
its collective defense capabilities and its cooperative security
approaches. We follow with keen interest the ongoing updating of NATO’s
Strategic Concept, which will take into account the new types of potential
missions and the continuing enlargement process. It is also essential that
the new NATO command structure function effectively and that the new
members become fully integrated as Bulgaria expects into all NATO
structures. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3">A consistent “open door”
policy is also of the utmost importance—not only for aspiring
candidates, but for the credibility of the reformed Alliance itself. Any
attempt, whether formal or informal, to interrupt this process would be
incompatible with its spirit. We count on NATO to show its clear
commitment to expand southeastwards by including stable new democracies,
such as Bulgaria, into the second wave of enlargement. Such an act would
not only greatly aid regional security-building efforts, but would boost
security Europe-wide. We expect that new invitations to join the Alliance
will be issued in 1999. </FONT> </P>
<P ALIGN="CENTER"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Arial"><B>BULGARIA’S
CONTRIBUTIONS TO SECURITY AND STABILITY</B> </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3">As far as Bulgaria is
concerned, our regional policies, including those on Kosovo, demonstrate
that we are a responsible, integral element of the solution to problems in
the region and in Europe. We believe that the appropriate institutional
basis for enhancing the area of stability around the troubled FRY is the
full integration of Bulgaria and other advanced candidate-states into
NATO. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3">We are following very
closely the situation in Kosovo. Despite some recent steps in the right
direction, real progress will be achieved only if all parties to the
conflict strictly comply with all requirements set out by the Contact
Group. As a neighboring state and aware of its responsibility, Bulgaria
will remain actively involved in all efforts by the international
community to find a lasting solution to the crisis and will be ready to
contribute to it accordingly. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3">One of the most important
follow-up measures to the Sofia meeting of Defense Ministers of
Southeastern European countries was the decision to set up a Multinational
Peace Force in the region with proposed headquarters in the Bulgarian city
of Plovdiv. The main objectives of this force will be to promote regional
military cooperation and to enhance the conflict-prevention and
crisis-management potential of our countries. The force will participate
in NATO- or WEU-led peace-support operations. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3">Bulgaria plans to continue
its intensive efforts to prepare for NATO membership. 1998 has been an
important year for implementing military reform. To comply with military
requirements, large-scale restructuring and redeployment of our armed
forces have begun. These reforms will make our forces highly mobile,
properly equipped, and interoperable with NATO forces. We have also
redefined military priorities and tasks aimed at increasing
interoperability with Allied procedures and equipment. Bulgarian forces
will be able to contribute to the collective defense of the Alliance as
well as to join crisis-management efforts of the international community.
</FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3">In addition to our work to
reform our military, last April the Bulgarian government adopted a program
to restructure and privatize our defense industry. As a result, only a
small number of defense-industrial enterprises will remain under limited
state control while the rest will be fully privatized. Bulgaria expects
leading Western companies to take an active part in this project. </FONT>
</P>
<P ALIGN="CENTER"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Arial"><B>CONCLUDING
REMARKS</B> </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3">Last year, at the Prague
Workshop, we exchanged views on NATO’s enlargement in terms of
something yet to come. Today, enlargement is a fact, and I have the
pleasure of extolling Bulgaria as a strong candidate for the next round of
accessions. Bulgarians share the view of an increasing number of leading
security experts and politicians that the next wave of expansion should
move southeastward. I hope that at the next NATO Workshop we will speak of
this point as a matter of fact. </FONT></P>
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<P ALIGN="LEFT">Copyright © 1998 Center for Strategic Decision
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