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INTRODUCTION The Canadian NATO Parliamentary Association has the honour to present its report on its participation in the NATO Parliamentary Assembly Plenary Session 13–17 November 2009. The Canadian delegation was led by Mr. Leon Benoit, MP and included Senator Raynell Andreychuk, General Rapporteur of the Political Committee; Senator Jane Cordy, Vice-President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly; Senator Joseph Day, Chair of the Defence and Security Committee’s Subcommittee on Security and Transatlantic Cooperation; Senator Pierre-Claude Nolin, Treasurer of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly; Mr. Lawrence MacAulay, MP and Mrs. Carole Freeman, MP. The NATO Parliamentary Assembly (NATO PA) is an inter-parliamentary organization of legislators from member countries of the North Atlantic Alliance, as well as 14 associate members.[1] It is completely independent of the official NATO structure. The Assembly’s principal objective is to foster mutual understanding among Alliance parliamentarians of the key security and defence challenges facing the transatlantic partnership. The NATO PA Autumn 2009 Plenary Session was hosted by the United Kingdom delegation in Edinburgh, Scotland, and chaired by the Honourable John Tanner of the United States. More than 200 parliamentarians from NATO member countries, North Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia participated in the session. MAIN ISSUES This session of the NATO PA focused on three primary issues. First, Afghanistan was recognized as the number one issue requiring NATO PA attention. Second, resetting the NATO relationship with Russia occupied a significant amount of attention. Third, there is general recognition of the expanded spectrum of threats facing NATO nations, including traditional military threats; proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD); international terrorism; adverse impacts of climate change; cyber-attacks against national infrastructure; international organized crime (in all its forms, including, but not limited to, illicit drug cultivation and trading; illegal human trafficking and unlawful commercial activity) and piracy on the high seas. POLITICAL COMMITTEE Senator Raynell Andreychuk and Mr. Lawrence MacAulay represented Canada at the meetings of the Political Committee on 13, 14 and 15 November 2009. Discussion centred on resetting the relationship between NATO and Russia, continuing NATO’s open door policy to enlargement and enhancing NATO engagement with Pakistan, to pursue regional stability in southwest Asia. As General Rapporteur of the Committee, Senator Andreychuk sponsored two resolutions which were accepted by the entire Assembly at the plenary session on 17 November 2009. DEFENCE AND SECURITY COMMITTEE Senator Joseph Day represented Canada at meetings of the Defence and Security Committee meetings held on 13, 14 and 15 November 2009. Various issues associated with the NATO mission in Afghanistan were debated at length. CIVIL DIMENSION OF SECURITY COMMITTEE Senator Jane Cordy and Mr. Lawrence MacAulay represented Canada at the Civil Dimension of Security Committee meetings held concurrently with other NATO PA committee meetings. Principal among issues discussed was the increasing threat of piracy off the Coast of Somalia. ECONOMIC COMMITTEE Mr. Leon Benoit and Ms. Carole Freeman represented Canada at the Economic Committee Meetings that paralleled meetings of the other NATO PA meetings. The impact of the collapse of the international economy was the clear focus of attention here. SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE Canada was represented by Senator Pierre-Claude Nolin at the Science and Technology Committee meetings held during the period 13–15 (inclusive) November 2009. The Committee focused its attention on means to reinforce the global nuclear non-proliferation regime. THE PLENARY SESSION The Plenary session took place on 17 November 2009, with the Honourable John Tanner (United States), President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, in the Chair. The Assembly observed a one-minute silence as a mark of respect to those who had lost their lives in and had been affected by the conflict in Afghanistan. Following a brief introduction, the President invited Mr. Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Secretary General of NATO and Chairman of the North Atlantic Council, to address the Assembly. During his presentation, the Secretary General addressed the broad range of issues being addressed by NATO, among which were: the continuing conflict in Afghanistan and its impact on regional stability; the necessity of limiting the proliferation of WMD and associated technology; the security implications of climate change; the challenges of countering cyber-attacks; the importance of securing energy sources; and the growing scourge of piracy on the high seas. He went on to discuss the development of NATO’s new strategic concept and concluded by outlining five broad areas of NATO transformation: military transformation to achieve a balance of defensive and expeditionary forces; the development of a mix of relevant capabilities and a better balance of burden sharing among members; the pursuit of a more mature NATO-Russia relationship; developing a closer relationship with non-NATO partners (e.g. Sweden, Finland, Australia and New Zealand); and finally, a continuing push for NATO internal reform to achieve a better civilian-military mix and enhance the decision-making process. Mr. Rasmussen answered questions from a number of delegates including Mr. Leon Benoit (Canada), who outlined Canada’s current position on the NATO mission in Afghanistan. The next presentation was delivered by The Right Honourable Lord Robertson of Port Ellen, Member of the United Kingdom House of Lords, President, Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House) and former NATO Secretary General. Lord Robertson made the interesting point that “we have gone to Afghanistan today, to prevent Afghanistan from coming to us tomorrow.” With a tinge of humour he noted that, while he was not in the habit of quoting Trotsky, he felt that Trotsky’s characterization of an earlier war was applicable to Afghanistan today. He echoed Trotsky’s thought that “You may not be interested in this war, but this war is interested in you.” In the second part of his presentation, Lord Robertson addressed the broader issue of NATO capabilities and emphasized the need to develop modern capabilities suited to current and future threats in the contemporary security environment. He echoed the Secretary General’s point about improving NATO civil-military integration. In follow-up questions and discussion, Senator Joseph Day (Canada) reinforced the need for modern expeditionary capabilities within the NATO military force structure. Senator Jane Cordy (Canada), a Vice-President of the Assembly, took the Chair. The Right Honourable David Miliband, United Kingdom Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs addressed the Assembly. He discussed NATO-EU cooperation, the NATO-Russia relationship, the importance of modernizing NATO’s internal structures and the requirement for renewed energy in tackling the Afghanistan conflict. He focussed his remarks on the need for a political ‘surge’ to match the military build-up and made the point that, in his view, security is inseparable from good governance. The next presentation came from United States Navy Admiral James G. Stavridis, the NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR). He emphasized the role of NATO as a bridge that connects, rather than divides, its members, pointing out that the Alliance has 85,000 troops conducting operations on three continents. In the past 10 years, NATO military staffs have shrunk from 23,000 to just 8,000 personnel. The main challenge, aside from successfully concluding military operations is keeping up with the speed at which contemporary threats evolve. On completion of the presentations, the Assembly proceeded with its own business. The Honourable John Tanner (United States) was re-elected President by acclamation. Senator Jane Cordy (Canada) was re-elected as one of five Assembly Vice Presidents. Senator Pierre Claude Nolin (Canada) was re-elected Treasurer by acclamation. He presented a draft budget for 2010 that was agreed to. In the afternoon, the Assembly heard a panel presentation on Women in the Armed Forces: The United Kingdom’s Perspective. The panel consisted of Brigadier Nicky Moffat, Lieutenant Commander Sarah West, Captain Alice Rawdon-Mogg and Flight Lieutenant Hannah Brown. They told the Assembly of their respective experiences in the British armed forces, but noted the continuing existence of certain restrictions on the employment of women, variations of which exist in other European military forces. Canadian delegates were pleased to note that Canada continues to lead the world by example in this area because there are no restrictions placed on the employment of women in the Canadian Forces. The rest of the session was devoted to approving committee resolutions. The Defence and Security Committee submitted a Resolution on NATO’s Enduring Commitment to Afghanistan that urged member governments and parliaments to reaffirm their enduring and lasting commitment to assisting the government of Afghanistan to provide a secure and stable environment; to endorse and resource the approach advocated by the ISAF Commander; and to supply the personnel, equipment, and funding necessary to speed the development of Afghan National Security forces. It was adopted after debate and minor amendment. The Committee on the Civil Dimension of Security tabled a resolution that urged member nations, inter alia, to support efforts by the Somali Transitional Federal Government and the United Nations to achieve political stability and sustainable economic development in Somalia; to review national legislation relating to piracy with a view to the full incorporation in domestic law of the provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and other relevant rules of international law; and to consider, as part of discussions on NATO’s long-term role in maritime security, avenues for practical co-operation with the European Union, as well as with other multinational efforts, particularly the Combined Maritime Forces. A resolution presented by the Economics and Security Committee on Moving Beyond the Global Economic Crisis urged member states to maintain ample liquidity in the economic system in this time of transition between crisis and growth. It also asked them to develop exit strategies for winding down stimulus programmes once recovery has firmly taken root and to bolster savings in periods of growth in order to mitigate the risk of boom and bust cycles. Members were also urged to construct strategies for keeping workers gainfully employed. The resolution went on to express interest in international co-ordination of economic strategy and resistance to protectionism. The resolution also called on the NATO Secretariat to present an annual report to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly’s Economics and Security Committee that details each member state’s current and projected future defence expenditure, and identifies the financial and human resources committed to NATO operations by each member state. Senator Raynell Andreychuk (Canada), General Rapporteur of the Political Committee, sponsored a resolution on Engaging Pakistan. Main elements of the resolution called upon member states to enable Pakistan to combat extremists effectively by further developing and expanding training and education courses for Pakistani officers; to encourage and support Pakistan’s efforts to address long-term challenges of poverty, unemployment, and underdevelopment through continued economic assistance; and to encourage India and Pakistan to open a dialogue on Kashmir, which would allow Pakistan the discretion to redeploy soldiers from its frontier regions with India to its frontier regions with Afghanistan. Senator Andreychuk also sponsored a resolution Reaffirming NATO’s Open Door Policy. It urged the governments and parliaments of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Montenegro and Ukraine to continue reform efforts aimed at strengthening democratic institutions, civil society, rule of law and the market economy and ensure protection of human rights and basic liberties. It further called on the government and parliament of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to continue to make use of NATO Membership Action Plan instruments to foster necessary reforms on the way to full NATO membership. Finally, it asked all member states to re-affirm NATO’s Open Door policy and to continue assisting aspirant countries on their path to NATO membership. The Science and Technology Committee presented a resolution on Reinforcing the Global Nuclear Non-Proliferation Regime, which called on member states to redouble their efforts to ensure that the 2010 Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference succeeds in strengthening the global nuclear non-proliferation regime. It urged continued direct dialogue with the Iranian leadership to work toward a solution that would not legitimise Iran’s uranium programme, but would reflect Iran’s broader economic interests. It also expressed interest in ensuring the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1874 that calls for the establishment of sanctions against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. The resolution further called on member states to reaffirm their commitment to, and adequate financing of, the Nunn-Lugar Co-operative Threat Reduction programmes and the G8 Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction. Finally, there was a call to increase the prominence of nuclear non-proliferation issues on the agenda of the North Atlantic Council and in the new NATO Strategic Concept. The session concluded at the end of the afternoon. Respectfully submitted,
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