PRESS RELEASE

3 June 1999

EU and Russia Rescue
NATO's Doomed Strategy

In negotiating peace with Yugoslavia, the EU and Russia, if the agreement holds, will have rescued NATO from a strategy that was leading nowhere. EU leaders at their Summit today in Cologne should build upon the success of their diplomatic co-operation with Russia and strengthen the EU's foreign and security role.

NATO spokesmen argue that NATO should be the primary body guaranteeing Europe's security. In a military sense that may be true. But military force is clearly not enough. Security involves much more than military might. NATO exercised its might without formal approval from the UN and with destructive consequences far beyond the scope of the problem. NATO has proved to be an efficient military tool, but lacks the skills, resources, and doctrine for effective crisis prevention. The EU, OSCE
and other institutions must urgently strengthen their capabilities in this area. Meanwhile, NATO should take a back seat in building peace and stability in South East Europe.

The peace agreement, if implemented, is a concrete and positive step towards the end of the war in Kosovo. However, the devil is in the details. Many questions remain to be answered. These include:

1. Will NATO forces be the core of the international security presence. What does a fundamental role for NATO mean?

2. What does a unified command for the international security presence mean and would that be a NATO or a UN command? Would a "European Defense Identity," which the EU is trying to build, provide another option in future?

3. Would there be a Russian zone of responsibility?

4. What are the long-term arrangements for Kosovo?

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