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Helsingfors 4 mars 2010
Carl Bildt, Utrikesminister

Common Challenges Ahead

Remarks at Seminar on Comprehensive Approach to Crisis Management within the debate about Nato's New Strategic Concept.

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The future development of Nato is very clearly something that is of great interest to us all, and I warmly welcome this opportunity to have an open discussion also among those nations today not members of the Alliance. It is not for us to try to dictate the policies to be decided by the members of the Alliance.

But as living on the continent that Nato tries to bring security to, and as partners to and participants in some of the most important Nato-operations of our time, I hope we are forgiven for having some views.

The importance of Article V

First - let me just stress how important the Article V commitment that is at the core of the Alliance is for all of Europe. There is no doubt that it was of outmost importance during the most critical period of that dark phase of Europe's history that come to its end in 1989.

Let us be clear: this was of fundamental importance also to Sweden during those decades when our aim was to make it possible for us to remain neutral in a new European- or world-wide conflict. And let us also be clear about how important this remains to all of Europe also today. The security it gives to the members of the Alliance contributes to stability of a much wider area - including the entire Nordic and Baltic area. Thus, when I hear that there will be a renewed emphasis also on the Article V commitments in the strategic review underway I can only welcome this.

The importance of stability- and state building

Second - we are all aware of the importance of stability- and state-building operations that have now made Sweden into a close partner of Nato. These operations are far more complex than just winning a war. They are about building a peace. And they accordingly require instruments well beyond what just winning a war would.

Afghanistan is indeed a perfect example that has proven that this is not a war that can be won just militarily. Our military efforts represent one of the necessary instruments in an overall stability- and state building operation that is as political as it is long-term.

We can't just outgun the Taliban - we have to out-govern them. That is the key to the long-term stability we seek. For complex stability- and state-building operations like this to have any chance of success, numerous international organisations must be able to work seamlessly together towards a common goal.

Exactly how this is done will be different in different cases. Kosovo was different from Bosnia. Afghanistan is different from Kosovo. And our next task will be different from Afghanistan.

We must thus develop far more of a "plug-and-play"-concept in these different international organisations, so that we can configure the right mix for the right mission. I am somewhat worried by tendencies to make Nato more responsible also for the civilian parts of stability- and state-building operations. Experience shows that this will not work.

Instead, Nato should develop its capability to plug seamlessly into the capabilities of other actors - the different parts of the UN family, the emerging instruments of the European Union, the international financial institutions, regional and national organisations. And these organisations should facilitate such needed cooperation through the establishment of strategic partnerships, which would allow for concrete cooperation in theatre.

We should develop more of interfaces - to continue with my computer language - in all of these international organisations, so as to make a "plug-and-play" concept truly feasible. This is a task for all - not only for Nato.

Third - there are numerous new challenges emerging, and I would assume that discussion on these also belong in a discussion about the future strategy of Nato.

Globalization

Globalization is the megatrend of our age - and it has demonstrated its resilience, strength and importance during the last few decades. Globalization is about making our societies more and more interconnected.

And the core of this is a rapid increase in the flows of persons, goods, services, information, capital, energy etc. between all corners of the world.

Without necessarily making territorial security less important, I would argue that "flow security" is the true challenge for the decades to come.

We are investing massively in protecting our air transport system.

We see how we are now sending forces to the Gulf of Aden to protect our shipping lanes.

We discuss the security of our energy supplies. Pipelines are the new staple ware of geopolitics.

Time does not allow me to go into all the challenges of the Flow Security of the future.

Acute challenges

Let me just mention the most acute of challenges.
There will be no security for our societies if we can't secure both our cyberspace and our orbital space - and they are interconnected.

There will be no conflict in the future in which the cyber-dimension will not be of critical importance. But this is more than dealing with the cyber dimensions of possible future conflicts. This is about the security of the most important part of global infrastructure today.

Let us be clear here as well: there is no peace in cyberspace - there are terrorists, spies, subversive attempts, ongoing attacks as well as preparations for much more disruptive and destructive operations. And we must do far more to counter all this - to secure the most critical of the flows of the process of globalization.

This task is well beyond both the mandate and possibilities of any single multilateral body. It includes numerous highly complex issues. But it is high time to put the issue high on the international agenda. This might well be the Hindu Kush of the future.

To sum up:

• First - the continued importance of the Article V issues.
• Second - the necessity of a "plug-and-play" concept for demanding stability- and state-building operations.
• Third - a focus on the flow security issues of tomorrow, and the increasingly acute cyber-security issues of today.