The Ministers of Defense from the nations participating in the Southeastern Europe Defense Ministerial (SEDM) process (12 SEDM nations and 4 observer nations) met at the annual SEDM Meeting in the lakeside city of Ohrid, on 8th October 2008.
In the occasion of the 10th Anniversary of the MPFSEE Agreement, signed in Skopje on 26th September 1998, during the meeting it was unveiled a monument plaque devoted to this event.
Bilateral meetings were carried out before the Plenary of the meeting.
Chairperson briefed SEDM ministers that an Initial Planning Meeting for establishing a Working Group on the Future Direction of SEDM had been held in conjunction with the 19th SEDM-CC meeting. It was agreed that there is a necessity this Working Group to review SEDM’s future roles and missions in order to focus SEDM and SEEBRIG activities that best support interoperability and Euro-Atlantic integration of current and future SEDM Nations.
SEDM Ministers welcomed the PMSC proposed way ahead for the possible SEEBRIG engagement in a PSO in the future.
MPFSEE Ministers of Defense commended the MPFSEE Nations, HQ SEEBRIG, and PMSC Secretariat for their work in finalizing and endorsing the 5th Additional Protocol to the MPFSEE Agreement. They encouraged the MPFSEE nations to ratify the protocol as soon as possible.
SEDM Ministers expressed their appreciation for the excellent work and synergy among all of the SEDM nations and the SEDM-CC and PMSC Secretariat on finalizing the procedures necessary for the endorsement of the Agreement on the Coordination Committee in the framework of South-Eastern Europe Defense Ministerial Process and the Framework document for SEDM Accession procedures. The SEDM Ministers agreed that the Agreement on the Coordination Committee in the framework of South-Eastern Europe Defense Ministerial Process and the Framework document should be ready for signature after all SEDM nations have completed their national procedures.
MPFSEE Ministers reiterated their welcome to Ukraine’s decision to accede to the MPFSEE Agreement, expressing their hope to see Ukraine as a full-fledged member in MPFSEE in 2009. MPFSEE Ministers highly praised the cooperation between HQ SEEBRIG and the Ukrainian General Staff.
SEDM Ministers emphasized the “open door” policy, expressing their willingness to see the aspirant nations of Montenegro and Serbia as full-fledged SEDM members in the near future.
They expressed their continuous support for ongoing NATO and EU-led operations in the region and beyond, and reiterated their commitment to contribute to NATO and EU efforts to strengthen security, stability and durable peace in South Eastern Europe. In this regard, Ministers thanked the Commander of JFC Naples for his contribution to this meeting and his briefing.
The SEDM Ministers agreed that the enlargement of NATO has been an unambiguous success in bringing new contributing nations in to the Alliance. Their efforts and NATO’s efforts as a whole have been key in projecting security and stability throughout the Euro-Atlantic area. They reiterated their belief that the continuation of regionally balanced enlargement is an essential element of NATO’s ongoing transformation. In this regard, they encouraged Alliance Heads of State and Government to reaffirm the continuance of the “open door” policy in line with Riga and Bucharest Summit Declarations.
Then, SEDM Ministers welcomed the new chairing nations for SEESIM 2010 and CBSC project. They fully supported and encouraged other nations to consider volunteering and hosting the SEEDIRET project.
MPFSEE Ministers of Defense approved the HQ SEEBRIG Annual Exercise, Training and Travel Plan for 2009 and SEEBRIG’s Budget for the Fiscal Year 2009. The MPFSEE Ministers of Defense also approved the PMSC Public Diplomacy Strategy for representing PMSC and SEEBRIG in the IOs.
SEDM Ministers thanked the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Bulgaria for hosting the next Ministerial meeting in Sofia, in 2009.
Finally, the SEDM Ministers expressed their gratitude to the Minister of Defense, H.E. Zoran KONJANOVSKI, for his warm hospitality in hosting this meeting. They also expressed appreciation for the efforts of his staff and SEDM‑CC and PMSC Secretariat in preparing and organizing all the details connected with the Ministerial event.
