HL Deb 30 October 1996 vol 575 cc21-2WA
Lord Kennet

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they will publish details of the financial criteria which they consider should apply to the enlargement of NATO, similar to those they have published for the enlargement of the European Union, and lay them before Parliament before agreeing to further discussion of enlargement of NATO in December this year.

Baroness Chalker of Wallasey

It is impossible to predict the likely costs of NATO enlargement until we know who will join, when, and on what terms.

Lord Kennet

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How the statement in the final communiqué of the ministerial meeting of the North Atlantic Council, issued in Berlin on 3rd June 1996, "We reaffirm our determination that the process of opening the Alliance to new members should not create dividing lines in Europe or isolate any country", is to be understood.

Baroness Chalker of Wallasey

As all allied governments agreed in September 1995, NATO's enlargement must be understood as only one important element of a broad European security architecture that transcends and renders obsolete the idea of "dividing lines" in Europe.