BUCHAREST SUMMIT OF VILNIUS GROUP PREMIERS ENDS

BUCHAREST, March 26 (Hina) - A two-day meeting of the premiers of the Vilnius Group, which is made up of ten countries aspiring towards joining NATO, ended in Bucharest on Tuesday. The conference focused on NATO enlargement, adjustment to new security threats in the 21st century, NATO's contribution to the fight against terrorism and mutual cooperation. #L# The premiers discussed the enlargement of NATO, which is expected to extend from the Baltic to the Black Sea, as well the organisation's expansion to the South. This includes the admission of Romania and Bulgaria, thanks to which NATO would gain access to the Black Sea and the possibility to strengthen its ties with Central Asia. The decision on which countries will be invited to join NATO will be made at a NATO summit in Prague this November. US President George Bush send a message through his envoy, Assistant Secretary of State Richard Armitage, saying the Prague summit would be an opportunity for the strongest possible expansion of NATO. Armitage stressed, though, that admission depended primarily on the candidate-countries and their commitment to reforms. NATO Secretary-General George Robertson told the participants in the Bucharest summit via video link that at least one county would be invited to join NATO in Prague, but that it was possible that as many as nine would be invited. The next summit of the Vilnius Group, the last to precede the Prague summit, will be held in Riga. The Bucharest summit was attended by Croatian Prime Minister Ivica Racan and Foreign Minister Tonino Picula. The Vilnius group was founded in 2000 and includes Albania, Bulgaria, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Macedonia, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Croatia, which became a full member in May last year. (hina) rml