[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2004, Book I)]
[March 29, 2004]
[Pages 475-477]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]
Remarks at a Ceremony Honoring Seven Nations on Their Accession to the
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
March 29, 2004
Thank you all. Good afternoon, and welcome to the White House.
Fifty-five years ago, the representatives of 12 nations gathered
here in Washington to sign the North Atlantic Treaty, which established
the most successful military alliance in history. Today we proudly
welcome Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, and
Slovenia. We welcome them into the ranks of the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization.
When NATO was founded, the people of these seven nations were
captives to an empire. They endured bitter tyranny. They struggled for
independence. They earned their freedom through courage and
perseverance, and today they stand with us as full and equal partners in
this great Alliance.
It has been my honor to host the Prime Ministers of
each new
NATO member in the Oval Office. I want to thank
them for their friendship. I want to thank them for their leadership. I
look forward to working with them to make the world more peaceful and
more free. Welcome to America.
I want
to thank
the foreign
and defense
ministers of
the new NATO members who are with us
today. I want to thank the Prime Ministers of Albania, Croatia, and
Macedonia, who are with us today. Jaap de
Hoop Scheffer is
with us today, who is the Secretary General of NATO. Thank you for
coming, Mr. Secretary General. I thank the Ambassadors of all the
members of NATO, both old and new.
I want to thank the Vice President,
Secretary of State Powell, Secretary of
Defense Rumsfeld, General Dick
Myers, General Jones, members of my administration. I want to thank the Members
of Congress who are with us today: Majority Leader Bill Frist of the United States Senate; Members of the Senate which
voted unanimously in support of the admission of the new members that we
welcome today. I want to thank the Members of the House of
Representatives who have joined us today. I want to thank those who are
here today whose vision years ago helped make this moment a reality. I
want to thank other distinguished guests. Welcome.
Today marks a great achievement for each of the nations joining our
Alliance. All member nations of NATO must be free and democratic and
fully committed to defending the principles of liberty. All member
nations must be willing and able to contribute to the common defense of
our Alliance. Our seven new members have built free institutions.
They've increased their military capabilities in the span of a decade.
They are stronger nations because of that remarkable effort, and the
NATO Alliance is made stronger by their presence.
Since NATO's founding, the assurance of mutual defense has been a
safeguard for peace. As President Truman said, ``By this treaty, we are
not only seeking to establish freedom from aggression and from the use
of force in the North Atlantic community,
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but we are also actively striving to promote and preserve peace
throughout the world.''
Under NATO's banner, the nations of Europe put aside rivalries that
had divided the Continent for centuries. NATO members stood watch on
freedom's borders for two generations of the cold war. Because of NATO's
vigilance, free people lifted the Iron Curtain and tore down the Berlin
Wall and replaced dictators with democratic governments.
In the aftermath of this victory, some questioned whether NATO could
or should survive the end of the cold war. Then the Alliance proved its
enduring worth by stopping ethnic cleansing in Bosnia and by ousting the
armies of a tyrant in Kosovo. Some
wondered whether NATO could adapt to the new threats of the 21st
century. Those doubts were laid to rest on September the 12th, 2001,
when NATO invoked for the first time in its history Article 5 of our
Charter, which states that an attack against one NATO Ally is an attack
against all.
NATO's core mission remains the same, the defense of its members
against any aggression. Today, our Alliance faces a new enemy, which has
brought death to innocent people from New York to Madrid. Terrorists
hate everything this Alliance stands for. They despise our freedom. They
fear our unity. They seek to divide us. They will fail. We will not be
divided. We will never bow to the violence of a few. We will never--we
will face the mortal danger of terrorism, and we will overcome it
together.
The countries we welcome today were friends before they were Allies,
and they were allies in action before becoming Allies by treaty. Today,
all seven of these nations are helping to bring lasting freedom to
Afghanistan and Iraq. Bulgaria provided refueling facilities during the
early days of Operation Enduring Freedom and has deployed more than 400
soldiers to Iraq. Military engineers from Estonia and Latvia are helping
to clear explosive devices from Iraq. Forces from Lithuania and Slovakia
are helping to secure Iraq. Romanian troops have sacrificed their lives
fighting terrorists in Afghanistan. And troops from Slovenia are serving
in the international force that is protecting the city of Kabul in
Afghanistan.
Forces from Albania and Croatia and Macedonia are also contributing
in Afghanistan or Iraq, proving their mettle as they aspire to NATO
membership. These three nations, joined together under the Adriatic
Charter, are building strong democracies at home that can contribute to
NATO efforts abroad. The United States supports these efforts. The door
to NATO will remain open until the whole of Europe is united in freedom
and in peace.
As witness to some of the great crimes of the last century, our new
members bring moral clarity to the purposes of our Alliance. They
understand our cause in Afghanistan and in Iraq, because tyranny for
them is still a fresh memory. These nations know that when great
democracies fail to confront danger, far worse peril can follow. They
know that aggression left unchecked can rob millions of their liberty
and their lives. And so now, as members of NATO, they are stepping
forward to secure the lives and freedom of others.
The NATO Alliance now flies seven new flags and reaches from the Bay
of Biscay to the Black Sea. And Europe, once the source of global
conflict, is now a force for stability and peace. Our great
transatlantic Alliance has met and overcome great dangers in the past,
and our work in NATO is not done. In the past, many assumed that NATO
represented a pledge that America would come to the aid of Europe.
Today, by our words and by our actions, we know that NATO means much
more. It is a solemn commitment that America and Europe are joined
together to advance the cause of freedom and peace.
NATO is acting to meet the challenges of our time. NATO forces are
securing Afghanistan. NATO ships are patrolling the
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Mediterranean, and NATO is supporting the Polish-led division in Iraq.
NATO is widening the circle of its friends by creating a new chapter in
our relationship with Russia. NATO members are reaching out to the
nations of the Middle East to strengthen our ability to fight terror and
to provide for our common security. And we're discussing how we can
support and increase the momentum of freedom in the greater Middle East.
Our unity and our commitment to freedom carried us to victory in the
cold war, and they showed us the way to victory in the war on terror.
Together, Europe and America can lead peaceful nations against the
dangers of our time. Europe and America can advance freedom and give
hope and support to those who seek to lift the yoke of isolation and
fear and oppression. That is the mission that history has set for NATO--
this great and confident alliance of 26 nations--and we proudly accept
this mission.
May God bless you all.
Note: The President spoke at 3:42 p.m. on the South Lawn at the White
House. In his remarks, he referred to Prime Minister Simeon Saxe-Coburg-
Gotha, Defense Minister Nikolai Svinarov, and Foreign Minister Solomon
Pasi of Bulgaria; Prime Minister Juhan Parts, Defense Minister Margus
Hanson, and Foreign Minister Kristiina Ojuland of Estonia; Prime
Minister Indulis Emsis, Defense Minister Atis Slakteris, and Foreign
Minister Rihards Piks of Latvia; Prime Minister Algirdas Mykolas
Brazauskas, Defense Minister Linas Linkevicius, and Foreign Minister
Antanas Valionis of Lithuania; Prime Minister Adrian Nastase, Defense
Minister Ioan Mircea Pascu, and Foreign Minister Mircea Dan Geoana of
Romania; Prime Minister Mikulas Dzurinda, Defense Minister Juraj Liska,
and Foreign Minister Eduard Kukan of Slovakia; Prime Minister Anton Rop,
Defense Minister Anton Grizold, and Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel of
Slovenia; Prime Minister Fatos Nano of Albania; Prime Minister Ivo
Sanader of Croatia; Prime Minister Branko Crvenkovski of Macedonia; NATO
Secretary General Jakob Gijsbert ``Jaap'' de Hoop Scheffer; Gen. James
L. Jones, USMC, NATO's Supreme Allied Commander, Europe; and former
President Slobodan Milosevic of the former Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia.