Skupna izjava ministrov za zunanje zadeve vilniuške skupine kandidatk za Nato
Joint statement
by the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Albania, Bulgaria,
Croatia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Romania, Slovakia and
Slovenia.
Bled, 4 October 2001
We, the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the "Vilnius
Group", have gathered at Bled, Slovenia, on the eve of the Sofia
Summit, in order to demonstrate our solidarity with the United States
and the Alliance and once again to assess our cooperation as well as
exchange experiences as concerns our efforts to join NATO.
The recent terrorist attacks in Washington and New York have deeply
shaken us. These atrocious acts were both an attack against the USA as
well as a serious blow to the entire community of democratic nations
that share common values of democracy, respect for human rights and
the rule of law.
Terrorism has evolved as one of the main threats to stability. The
Alliance is faced with new challenges to which, we firmly believe, it
will find effective responses. We are committed to fulfill our role in
the spirit of the Washington Treaty and as members of the
international anti- terrorist coalition.
We are convinced that NATO will remain the most important guarantor
of peace and stability. Following the tragic events that have so
deeply affected the United States, we express our full solidarity and
support to the American people and the Government of the US. To the
bereaved families of the victims we offer our deepest sympathies.
We believe that our activities in the past year have led to
significant progress towards reaching our goal at the next NATO Summit
in Prague. Our cooperation and endeavors are in line with the vision
of the new Euro-Atlantic community, based on common values and open to
new members. We see our countries in a Europe whole and free.
The statements of the leaders of the United States and other Allies
confirm our expectations regarding invitations for NATO membership to
be issued in Prague, which fills us with confidence and optimism as
well as with resolve to fully implement the Membership Action Plan.
Cooperation of the "Vilnius Group" has been successful at
various levels. We are glad to note that joint activities of our
Ambassadors in the capitals of NATO member states have born fruit.
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