§ 24. Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the enlargement of NATO following the Prague summit. [83979]
§ Mr. HoonAt the Prague summit NATO issued invitations to begin accession talks to Bulgaria. Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia. This enlargement is a major step forward for European security. I know the invitees have made great efforts over the past three years to prepare themselves under the Membership Action Plan, and they must continue to do so during the accession process. I am pleased that the United Kingdom will continue its significant contribution to helping with those preparations.