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CIAO DATE: 09/04
NATO's 2004 Istanbul Summit: Charting The Alliance's Ongoing Adaptation to 21st Century Risks and Challenges
Jaap de Hoop Scheffer
When they meet in Istanbul on 28-29 June, NATO's 26 Heads of State and Government will have a busy agenda. The Summit agenda will reflect the volatility of the new, 21st century security environment. And it will reflect the strong determination of Alliance governments to continue to transform NATO into an effective instrument for tackling the many risks and challenges which that environment poses.
Our Istanbul Summit will cap a month of intensive, top-level diplomatic activity, including the commemoration of the Normandy landings, the G-8 and US-EU Summits. This means that Istanbul will be part of a wider picture. In today's fluid strategic environment, this is as it must be. Our transatlantic Alliance will of course continue to ensure collective defense for its member states. But it will also act with its partners and other international organizations to defend against new threats- by projecting stability through its missions, partnerships and transformation of military capabilities.