Baltics urge NATO expansion during Bucharest Summit

On April 3rd at the NATO summit in Bucharest, attended by the leaders of all three Baltic countries, member states unanimously called attention to the notion that Ukraine and Georgia will become NATO member states. During the summit, Latvia expressed firm support for offering a NATO Membership Action Plan (MAP) to both states.

 "The agreement reached in Bucharest is a clear political signal of support by the member states regarding the integration of Georgia and Ukraine into NATO," said Foreign Minister Maris Riekstins.

Foreign Minister Paet confirmed that Estonia has always supported issuing a MAP to Georgia. He also emphasized that the Georgian government must guarantee that reforms will continue.

According to the foreign minister, "a strong signal must be sent to Georgia during the Bucharest summit. We should inspire them to try even harder to implement the necessary reforms".

Estonian President Toomas Ilves had this advice, based on his own country's experience with NATO membership:

"Don't be a Marxist" he said, "and by that I mean Groucho Marxist". He then told the audience of the scene where Groucho Marx walks into a bank with a gun to his head claiming that he'll take his life unless they give him all their money.

Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomes the European Commission's determination to continue cooperation based on close mutual relations with the countries which had expressed their willingness and have necessary capabilities. 

 
"It is very important to evaluate properly the progress of the eastern EU neighbours in implementation of the Neighbourhood Action Plan in the future also. In their turn these countries should continue to implement internal reforms and strengthen bilateral relations with the EU," Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Petras Vaitiekūnas said.

 
Despite the overwhelming support, several NATO member states are opposed to the expansion. U.S. President Bush is in favor of the move, while France and Germany are voicing their opposition, insisting that the step would put stress on already strained relations with Russia.

 
Earlier today, Russian President Putin expressed his unhappiness at NATO's eastward expansion plans.

The Russian Foreign Ministry called the expansion plan "a great strategic error."  

Russia's ambassador to NATO, Dmitry Rozogin, stated "I doubt very much that in less than a year Georgia can solve its territorial problems and Ukraine can change the current proportion of NATO sympathizers,".

The request for NATO expansion to  Georgia and  Ukraine will be reviewed again in December 2008