Foreign Minister Maris Riekstins congratulates Anders Fogh Rasmussen on taking up position as NATO Secretary General and is gratified at his decision to include Aivis Ronis in group of experts for drafting NATO's new strategic concept [04 Aug 2009]

On 3 August, the NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen named the experts nominated by NATO member countries to work with Secretary General on a new Strategic Concept for further public consultation within member countries. Among the 12 experts appointed by Secretary General is a Latvian candidate jointly nominated by the Baltic states, Aivis Ronis, former Ambassador of Latvia to the U.S. and former Permanent Representative to NATO.

Foreign Minister Maris Riekstins emphasises that the appointment of Mr Ronis to a group of such importance is an achievement of Latvia's foreign policy and of all three Baltic states. The inclusion of a Latvian representative in the group of experts places particular responsibility on Latvia to represent the vision of all Baltic states with regard to further development of the Atlantic Alliance.

This is of a particular importance to Latvia and to the other Baltic states because the Strategic Concept is one of NATO's key strategic documents to be developed after Latvia joined NATO in 2004. The development of the document was determined by new threats to security, changes in strategic environment and a considerable enlargement of the Alliance by accepting new member countries.

On 4 April, the NATO Heads of State and Government during their meeting in Strasbourg/ Kehl resolved to draft a new NATO Strategic Concept aimed at defining the long term role of the Alliance which faced the new security conditions of the 21st century. The new concept is to be developed until the next meeting of the Heads of State and Government in Portugal.

The current Strategic Concept was approved in 1999. The development of the new Strategic Concept will be lead by the NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen who on 1 August this year took the post over from former Secretary General, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer.

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