Friday, May 28, 2010

DTN News: NATO And Ukraine Discussed Defence Reform

DTN News: NATO And Ukraine Discussed Defence Reform
Source: DTN News / NATO
(NSI News Source Info) BRUSSELS, Belgium - May 29, 2010: On 26 May 2010, the eighth Senior Level meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Joint Working Group on Defence Reform (JWGDR) was held in Kyiv under the co-chairmanship of the First Deputy Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine, Mr. Stepan Havrysh and the NATO Assistant Secretary General for Defence Policy and Planning, Ambassador Jiří Šedivý. The meeting addressed issues related to Ukraine-NATO cooperation in implementing defence and security sector reforms. The contribution of the JWGDR to the implementation of the Annual National Programme of Ukraine (ANP) was addressed. Among other issues the need to establish an effective inter-agency coordination system in implementing defence and security sector reforms in the context of the ANP was highlighted. Participants also discussed the key elements and the process of implementation of the Strategic Defence Review in Ukraine. The implementation of the JWGDR programmes and initiatives was reviewed and support was voiced for continued co-operation in this framework. Participants stressed the benefits of reform, both in terms of more efficient use of scarce resources and further improvement of the capabilities of the Ukrainian defence and security structures. The JWGDR was also briefed on the activities of the NATO Liaison Office in Ukraine in support of the work of the JWGDR, including priorities for its future work. Representatives of NATO nations also exchanged views with their Ukrainian partners on the preparations for the meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Commission in Defence Ministers’ Session in June 2010. A roundtable under the NATO-Ukraine Partnership Network for Civil Society Expertise Development took place in the margins of the Senior Level meeting. It gathered representatives of non-governmental organizations, Ukrainian and Allied officials, as well as defence and security experts. Their debate focused on priorities for defence and security sector reform in Ukraine and NATO-Ukraine defence cooperation in general. Deputy Minister of Defence of Ukraine, Mr. Grygoriy Pedchenko and Deputy Head of the Security Service of Ukraine, Mr. Volodymyr Porodko opened the roundtable together with NATO Assistant Secretary General Ambassador Šedivý.

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