SG Hoop Scheffer : on Afghanistan+, NATO needs Human Rights Values to succeed
NATO needs Values to succeed in its present and future tasks, said at the Human Rights Capital : Strasbourg, Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, speaking about one of the most important issues for the 2009 Summit : Afghanistan.
He was addressing his main message for NATO's future on the horizon of 2020 to "young leaders" from many countries all over the world at the eve of the TransAtlantic Organizations 60th Anniversary Summit of 28 Heads of State and Government, hosted by France and Germany, including new USA President Obama, which has to decide, in the following 2 days, both on Afghanistan and on NATO's change of Strategy.
- I can't send a 19 years old boy to Afghanistan without telling him that he's going there to defend Values, stressed de Hoop Scheffer.
And I need to be able to say to a Mother and a Father, when they get the body of their son killed in Afghanistan, that he fought for respect of and defence of Human Rights Values, NATO's Secretary General said.in Strasbourg, .
- "In Afghanistan, NATO's Military cannot make the difference. Because the key question will be a Political - civil one", stressed the experienced former OSCE Secretary General, f. Dutch Foreign Minister, and outgoing NATO's SG.
- "I do not believe in the "Clash of Civilisations", but "I believe in Universal Values", he pointed out, brushing away a pretext often abused by some to try to cover-up human rights abuses.
But, "never forget : Values don't come accidentally. They have to be protected", he added.
A first occasion for that might be given immediately at Strasbourg's Summit, where the frontrunner candidate for his succession to the post of New NATO's SG, Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen, already endored by Germany, the USA, and many other big countries, leads a government known as defensor of basic Human Rights' Values, such as Freedom of Expression in various cases, and fight against Torture.
In this regard, Denmark had filed an Interstate application versus Turkey at the European Court of Human Rights in order to protect a Danish-Turkish Citizen from Torture and Inhuman/Degrading Treatments, which concluded in a "Friendly Agreement" with Ankara formally promissing to the ECHR that it would do everything at its disposal to curbe exceptionally sky-rocketing Torture figures in the country.
ChristianDemocrat Danish Foreign Minister, Per Stig Moller's statements in favor of the tortured young man had made headline news some years ago.
But EU Parliament's latest Resolution on Turkey's contriversial EU-bid, adopted on March 2009 in Strasbourg, expresses "concern" for the "growing Number" of Torture cases reported in Turkey.
New US President, Barack Obama, has often linked his decision to completely close the Guantanamo prison, (already on, the way out during the 2nd term of his predecessor, former US President G.W.Bush), with a clear rejection of any Torture and inhuman or degrading treatments.
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Sarkozy and Merkel want deals with Obama on European Security at Strasbourg's NATO 2009 Summit
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In parallel but concording moves, EU Chair, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angie Merkel both invited this week US-President elect, Barack Obama, to discuss important deals breaking new ground on European Security during the NATO's 60 Years Anniversary Summit of Heads of State in Strasbourg, where Obama is expected to make his 1st visit to Europe as a President on April 2009.
Merkel focused mainly on smoother NATO - EU Defence and Security policy cooperation, while Sarkozy spoke about PanEuropean Security, associating both Russia and the USA, proposing to freeze missile and shields' deployement until an agreement is reached.
But both tackled some hard nuts to crack : Turkey's VETO against the participation of EU Member Cyprus to EU-NATO cooperation, and Russia's anouncement on deployment of missiles up to Kaliningrad, at EU's belly, in reply to USA's wish to set up missile shields in EU States such as Poland or Czech Republic, etc.
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- "Certainly...one of the points that we'll dicuss with the New US President", Barak OBAMA, "who will come f'or the 1st time in Europe as president, at the NATO Summit", co-hosted by France and Germany in Strasbourg, ""concerns, above all, the European Security and Defence Policy" (ESDP), and "the relations between NATO and its partners", with whom it should "work together", anounced earlier this week Merkel.
We must find "a reasonable and adequate concept to articulate NATO and European Security and Defense policy", because of a "series of practical issues, sometimes difficult to understand", but that "we must discuss".
- "An example" of that is "the issue of Cyprus and Turkey", said Merkel, where Ankara raises problems "from Kosovo up to Afghanistan", as also CoE's chair, Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt recently observed in Strasbourg replying to EuroFora's questions.
- "We must do something to smoothen this problem for good, and not only on a case-by-case basis, laboriously negotiated each time". Here, we must find "a reasonable and adequate concept to articulate NATO and European Security and Defense policy", Merkel stressed.
- "With good will from all sides, it could and should be posible. Germany wants also to help on that". Otherwise, "the coming generations will not understand why it took Decades to do so". But, if we "don't even achieve that for Decades, this would be an Historic Failure !", the German Chancellor warned
- "I think that our American partners are increasingly realizing that", Merkel said, pleading for "a stronger European Security and Defence policy, with which, I believe, the Atlantic Security Partnership can also strengthen and solidify".
Meanwhile, USA is also due to take in 2009 a special status inside EU-led EUROCORPS, the European Army HeadQuarters, based in Strasbourg.
Merkel said that after meeting in Berlin with NATO's Secretary General, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, earlier this week, precisely in order to "prepare NATO's Summit", scheduled for the beginning of April 2009 in Strasbourg.
Scheffe, knows well Strasbourg, since he chaired the CoE, as Holland's Foreign Minister, when he brokered a controversial deal precisely on Turkey and Cyprus about the implementation of ECHR judgements on Greek Cypriot displaced persons' houses and properties in 2003. He returned later at least once, for a WEO meeting at the CoE, where he precisely had highlighted such EU - NATO issues.
EU Commission's 2008 Report on Turkey has just observed that, on European Defense - Security policy, "Turkey continues to object to EU-NATO Cooperation which would involve all EU Member States". "This created Problems for EU-NATO co-operation in the context of Civilian ESDP missions, in particular in Kosovo and Afghanistan".
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French EU Chair, President Sarkozy and Merkel are visiting Washington on Friday and Saturday for a Global G-20 Summit with current US President George Bush, on the sidelines of which are expected preparatory contacts with US President-elect Obama's entourage, even if himself might stay in Chicago until he takes over on January 21.
Before going to Washington, Sarkozy concluded today an UE - Russia Summit with Dmitry Medvedev, where they "spoke in length on PanEuropean Security" :
- As EU President, I proposed that we meet on mid-2009 in a framework such as OSCE's in order to set the foundations of a Future Pan-European Security, which would associate Russia and USA, and that, meanwhile, nobody speaks about deploying missiles or shields, which complicate the situation".
- NATO's Summit in Strasbourg-Kehl, on April 2009 is a perfect occasion to discuss with our American friends and to prepare a possible OSCE Summit for these issues f.ex. for June or July", Sarkozy concluded.
- We must all abstain from Unilateral measures" dangerous for Europe's security. "Russia only reacted to decisions taken by some other countries. But if they are ready to cooperate, we are ready to discuss. EU could be an intermediary", added Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, before going himself too at the Washington G-20 Economic Summit.