§ Mr. HancockTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the impact of 11 September on(a) NATO, (b) the EU and (c) the UK's regional interests; and if he will make a statement. [17363]
§ Mr. HoonNATO's response to the 11 September attacks included the invocation of Article 5 of the Washington treaty, which states that an attack on one Ally is an attack on all, for the first time in the Alliance's history. This has been supported by a series of specific actions, including deployment of NATO's Airborne Early Warning Force and the Standing Naval Force Mediterranean. The longer-term implications of the events of 11 September, including for the Alliance's force structures and for relations with Russia, are currently under discussion within the Alliance.
The EU Special Council on 21 September agreed to co-operate with the US in bringing to justice and punishing the perpetrators of the 11 September attacks, and approved a set of measures to combat terrorism, including enhancing police and judicial co-operation, developing legal instruments, putting an end to the funding of terrorism and strengthening air security. The General Affairs Council on 8 October, and again on 20 November, confirmed that all partners strongly support the US and UK military action.
The attacks have reinforced the need to build and maintain defence relationships with partners throughout the world. The unprecedented level of international support in the fight against terrorism demonstrates clearly 911W the value of having strong defence relationships. As part of our work on a further chapter to the Strategic Defence Review, we are looking very closely at the impact of 11 September on international organisations, including NATO and the EU, and on our regional interests, not least given the need to sustain long-term coalitions against international terrorism. I expect to publish conclusions in the early summer of next year.