In April, 2008, future leaders from across the Euro-Atlantic region will be in Bucharest, Romania to grapple with the major security issues facing the Atlantic Community today. The Young Atlanticist Summit will be held in conjunction with the NATO Summit, and will bring together students and young professionals representing NATO and Partnership for Peace members, giving them an extraordinary opportunity to meet directly with decision makers and build consensus on critical issues in the Alliance. The Young Atlanticist Summit is organized under the leadership of the Atlantic Council of the United States and the Euro-Atlantic Council of Romania, in association with the Youth Atlantic Treaty Association and the Atlantic Treaty Association, and is hosted by the Romanian Intelligence Service.

On the road to the Bucharest Summit

Romanian President Traian Basescu outlines what he hopes this year’s NATO Summit can achieve. This year Romania will have the honor of hosting NATO’s Bucharest Summit. The event will happen in a time and place full of symbolism. Since the creation of the Partnership for Peace, 14 years ago, NATO has added ten new members. The Alliance has forged a culture of cooperation, advised on defence reforms and developed political dialogue. In doing so, it has also respected the interests and needs of its Partners from the Balkans to Eastern Europe and across the Black Sea towards the Caucasus and Central Asia. view article

Official visit of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Adrian Cioroianu, in Oslo

On February 11-12, 2008, Mr. Adrian Cioroianu, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, made an official visit in the Kingdom of Norway. The visit is part of the series of consultations on the security policy, held by the head of the Romanian diplomacy in the context of the NATO Summit, programmed on April 2008, in Bucharest. The discussions that Minister Cioroianu had with his Norwegian counterpart, Jonas Gahr Støre, focused on issues of common interest on the Summit’s agenda, on the EU issue and on the energy security. They also reviewed the present stage and the perspectives of the relationships between the two countries. The program of the visit in Oslo also included meetings with the Norwegian Minister of Defense, Mrs. Anne Grete Strøm-Erichsen, with Mr. Thorbjørn Jagland, the President of the Parliament of Norway, and with Mr. Olav Akselsen, the President of the Foreign Politic Commission. Also, Mr. Adrian Cioroianu had a short speech titled “NATO Bucharest Summit: ambitions and Opportunities”, at the Norwegian Atlantic Committee (NAC). view article

State’s Kurt Volker previews Bucharest NATO Summit
The United States and Europe as a transatlantic community really do form a single democratic community anchored on shared values of democracy, market economy, rule of law, human rights. We are the pillars of this in the world. view article

Romanian President and NATO Chief unveil summit logo
Romanian President Traian Basescu visited NATO Headquarters on Thursday 31 January. He met with NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer for bilateral talks to discuss the main topics in preparation for the upcoming Bucharest summit. view article

Tariceanu wants for the NATO reunion in Bucharest to create a favorable image for Romania
Premier Calin Popescu Tariceanu declared on Thursday that current information shows that the preparations for organizing the NATO Summit in Bucharest are moving further, and acknowledged the work performed by the institutions involved, saying that he wishes for the reunion to create a favorable image for Romania. view article

Nato in the News

NATO ambassadors see progress in Afghanistan
The North Atlantic Council completed a three day visit to Afghanistan on 21 February 2008. “The visit provided the NATO Allies a great opportunity to take stock of progress in Afghanistan as we approach the NATO summit in Bucharest,” said NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer. view article

NATO in Afghanistan
NATO is a key component of the international community’s engagement in Afghanistan, assisting the Afghan authorities in providing security and stability, paving the way for reconstruction and effective governance. view article

NATO Secretary General meets with US President Bush in Washington
NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer met with US President George W. Bush in Washington on 29 February. view article

NATO Secretary General visits Kosovo
14 Mar. - NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer accompanied by senior NATO military officials, travelled to Kosovo on 14 March 2008 to assess the security situation. view article

NATO Secretary General visits Romania
The NATO Secretary General, Mr. Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, visited Bucharest on 11 January 2008. He met with President Traian Basescu, Prime Minister Calin Popescu-Tariceanu and Defence Minister Teodor Melescanu. view article

High-level experts discuss environmental security
12 Mar. - The second NATO Science Forum on Environmental Security met on 12 March 2008 at NATO HQ in Brussels to discuss environmental security. view article