WELCOMING STATEMENT
by the North Atlantic Council
to the Three Allies
NATO Press Release
12 March 1999
Today a new chapter opens in the history of the Atlantic Alliance and of Europe. The North
Atlantic Council warmly welcomes three new Allies - the Czech Republic, Poland and Hungary -
who today will formally accede to the Washington Treaty. Next week, on Tuesday 16 March we
will receive the Prime Ministers of the Czech Republic, Poland and Hungary here in Brussels.
Their flags will be raised alongside those of the other 16 member countries at a ceremony of
welcome. They will then take their seats at the table of the North Atlantic Council as full and
equal Allies.
The Alliance will continue to welcome new members in a position to further the principles of the
Treaty and contribute to security in the Euro-Atlantic area. NATO’s door will remain open to all
those willing and able to contribute to our common vision of a lasting order of peace based on
human rights, freedom and democracy.
The process of opening the Alliance to new countries is part of the Alliance’s policy to improve
the security and stability environment for nations in the Euro-Atlantic area. The contours of a
new security order in Europe become clearly discernible. It is based on integration and
cooperation, not confrontation. It raises the security of all and it excludes nobody. The countries
of Europe are moving closer together to finally overcome the division of Europe.
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We, the members of the North Atlantic Council, look forward to working with the Czech
Republic, Hungary and Poland in our common quest to make the 21st Century a time of peace
and progress for all our peoples.
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