President Traian Basescu hopes NATO would open its doors at the summit meeting in Bucharest, for all three candidates - Albania, Croatia and Macedonia.
'As the president of a country that believed in its Euro-Atlantic destiny and counted on the allies' solid support, I have the moral duty to publicly voice hope that the Alliance, in Bucharest, will open its doors for all three candidate states - Albania, Croatia and Macedonia. We need here a
consensus based on the individual progress of each candidate state, but also on the constantly changing regional context', Basescu said in an opening address to the Trans-Atlantic Forum staged by the German Marshall Fund on Tuesday.
He insisted that the enlargement is not the only incentive to other states' getting closer to NATO, as the partnerships for peace are deemed 'an essential element to strengthening security and backing reforms'.
'I'm glad we'll have the opportunity to also meet the leaders of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Serbia', the Romanian president said, adding that NATO has the duty to back 'Romania's partners in the Balkans on the European and Euro-Atlantic route they have taken'. He also said he believes 'Serbia has paid enough for the mistakes of the past'.
'The Serbian people keeps on bearing the bill for the mistakes made in Serbia's name', Basescu said, adding this is the reason why the Alliance should be prepared to offer Belgrade a clear prospect for getting back 'inside the European and Euro-Atlantic community'.
(Source: Rompres)
