NATO- News 1/06

The Intensified Dialogue between NATO and Ukraine continues

The Ukrainian prepares to support Operation Active Endeavour

Multinational contract provides for the use of Russian and Ukrainian Antonov aircraft to meet shortfalls in strategic airlift

2 Intensified Dialogue

3 Operation Active Endeavour

4 Strategic airlift

5-9 Focus on defence reform, intelligence oversight, military conference, scientific cooperation, seminars 2

NATO-Ukraine News Ukraine's efforts to pursue good-neighbourly topursue Ukraine's efforts The foreign policy issuesdiscussed related to Television andRadioBroadcasting. andtheState Committeeon Atlantic Integration, theNational Centrefor Euro- the SecurityService, forces, thearmed Security andDefence Council, aswelltheNational economy and finance, justice, theinterior, defence, foreign affairs, presidential secretariat andtheministriesof the Ministers, theCabinetof representatives of Other seniorandworking-level included officials Ukraine. of theSecurityService Deputy Headof Justice andthe theDeputyMinisterof Defence, DeputyMinisterof including theFirst 17 officials, of headed arobust Ukrainiandelegation, DeputyForeignFirst MinisterAntonButeiko anddefence andsecuritysectorreform. issues, domesticpolicy legal issues, foreign policy issues, News 2/05 talksinSeptember2005( staff roundof sincethefirst efforts Ukraine's reform andtoreview progressin for NATO membership, Ukraineasapotentialcandidate expectations of have exchange anotherinformal ontheAllies' talkswasto theday-long setof The objective of NATO on23March. Headquarters talksundertheDialoguetookplaceat staff of asecondfullround waslaunched, related reforms Ukraine's aspirations toNATO and membership Almost ayear sincetheIntensifiedDialogueon Intensified Dialogue continues .Fu esoso talksaddressed Four sessionsof ). see NATO-Ukraine assistance toUkraine. technical including theprovision of cooperation, NATO-Ukrainetechnical issuesaffecting aswell agreements betweenUkraineandNATO, issues raisedaddressedvarious aspectsof n h iityo theInterior troops. of and theMinistry Ukraineintelligence agencies of Security Service including inthesecuritysector, wider reforms aswell andtheGeneral Staff, defence ministry the fromtheongoingreorganisation of learned andlessons Ukraine'sdefence budget, Defence, published annual UkrainianWhite Bookon therecently talks focused on thestatus of The staff Euro-Atlanticintegration. objective of the of area isalsoessentialfor Ukraine'spursuit inthis reforms The successfulimplementation of theIntensifiedDialogue. well before the launch of since the NATO-Ukraine agendafor alongtime, hasbeenon Defence andsecuritysectorreform corruption andeconomicdevelopments.corruption thefightagainst elections, parliamentary issues focused onthepreparations for Ukraine's domestic Discussion of frozen conflictinMoldova. including attempts tohelpresolve the discussed, Security andstabilityinthewiderregionwasalso neighbouring countriesthroughpeacefulmeans. relations andsettleoutstandingdisputeswith The successfulimplementation Euro-Atlantic integration of reforms isessentialfor Headquarters on1February Secretary General atNATO Borys Tarasyuk meetsNATO Ukrainian Foreign Minister The legal Earlier this year, also in the framework of the Intensified Ukrainian support for Dialogue, two meetings of NATO's Political Committee with Operation Active Endeavour Ukraine were held. The first, in January, was dedicated to various foreign policy issues; the second, in February, Rear Kabaneko, Deputy Commander of the provided an opportunity to discuss legal issues and Ukrainian Navy, led a Ukrainian delegation in a visit to Ukraine's constitutional reforms. Progress in the Intensified NATO Headquarters on 23 February. They briefed Dialogue was also one of many subjects of discussion members of NATO's Military Committee and had working- of Foreign Minister Borys Tarasyuk's meeting with level discussions with NATO military staff on preparations NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer on for Ukrainian ships to support Operation Active Endeavour, 1 February at NATO Headquarters. the Alliance's maritime counter-terrorist operation in the Mediterranean.

An exchange of letters established the legal framework for Ukrainian support to Operation Active Endeavour in April President signs Annual Target Plan 2005. Since that time, several groups of experts from Allied military commands have visited the Ukrainian Black Ukraine's Annual Target Plan for 2006 was signed by Sea Fleet Headquarters at to establish good President on 6 April. The NATO- communications at the working level and to work out Ukraine Commission had previously endorsed the joint practical issues to facilitate Ukraine's efforts. Ukraine is NATO-Ukraine actions included in the Plan. currently preparing a , an amphibious landing ship, a and boarding teams (to be deployed on a The Annual Target Plan sets targets in different areas rotational basis) in support of the operation. While including internal political issues, foreign and security the target date for the participation of the first Ukrainian policy, defence and security sector reform, public ship was originally early 2007, the intention is to bring information, information security and economic and this forward to as early as this autumn, once all legal issues. In some areas, the targets are to be met pre-deployment training and preparations are through internal actions by Ukraine and, in others, joint completed successfully. NATO-Ukraine actions have also been agreed. Meeting these targets will be a step towards achieving the long- Training and certification are the two main elements of term strategic objectives that were identified in the 2002 pre-deployment preparations. NATO is sending mobile NATO-Ukraine Action Plan with a view to bringing training teams to Ukraine to help develop familiarise Ukraine closer to its Euro-Atlantic integration goals. Ukrainian navy personnel with NATO standard procedures The full text of the Annual Target Plan has been and communications. There is also a need for training at published online at: www..int/ukraine sea with Allied ships participating in Operating Active Endeavour to practise joint manoeuvering and the boarding of suspect ships.

By monitoring shipping and providing escorts to non-military shipping through the Straits of Gibraltar, Operation Active Endeavour helps detect, deter and protect against terrorist activity in the Mediterranean

3 4

NATO-Ukraine News by Swedenon23March. Slovenia andtheUnited Kingdom—werejoined Slovakia, Portugal, Poland, Norway, Netherlands, the Luxembourg, Hungary, France, Finland, , Germany, theCzech Republic, Canada, The 15originalsignatories — Germany. Leipzig, basedin the Russian company Volga-Dnepr, of asubsidiary contract withRuslan SALISGmbH, 15NATO countriessigneda On 23January, in2010. expected tostart Airbus A400Maircraft, pendingdeliveries of strategic capabilities, airlift inEuropean interim solutiontomeetshortfalls Ukrainian Antonov aircraftaretobeusedasan Russian and Thanks toamultinational contract, Strategic airliftagreement signed NATO ships. processthat isusedtoevaluatesame certification must beassessedfor operational readinessinthe theUkrainianships Operation Active Endeavour, priortotheiractualintegration into In addition, and administration alsohave tobeaddressed. Various issues related tologistics understood. reviewed andfully distributed, to betranslated, time for allthedocumentsrelated totheoperation Itwillalsotake some Ukrainian navy personnel. Englishlanguageskillsamong the lack of The mostsignificantis effectively. participate addressed for Ukrainianshipstobeable to willneedtobe key concerns A coupleof fcargo. of upto120tons AN-124-100 cantransport Asingle canhandleoutsized which airlift cargo. Pakistan have highlightedtheneedfor strategic operation for disaster-relief and theearthquake totheAfricanUnion'smissioninDarfur,support itslogistical ongoing operation inAfghanistan, NATO's Inrecentyears, they areneeded. where troopsandequipmentto the rapiddeployment of Strategic isakey airlift capabilityenabling 2003. strategic by airlift NATO inJune defence ministers for develop toarrange amultinational consortium intentto aletterof evolved fromthesigningof The SALISplan peryear. 2000 flying hours committed tousingtheaircraftfor aminimum of have The countriesconcerned Netherlands. the Coordination CentreinEindhoven, operation willbemanagedby theSALIS Maintenance andSupply Agency andits contract isadministeredby theNATO The andUkraine'sADB. Volga-Dnepr, company, willbedrawn fromtheRussian February, willbecomeavailablewhich fromthebeginningof The aircraft, with apossibilitytoextend itfurther. The contract'sinitialduration isfor threeyears EU frameworks. strengthen capabilitiesinboththeNATO and (SALIS) programmetomeetcommitments intheStrategic InterimSolution Airlift participating allowsthecountries multinational arrangement This and anothertwoonninedays notice. twomoreonsixdays notice on full-timecharter, The contractprovides for twoAN-124-100aircraft operation reliefearthquake NATO's Pakistan were usedfor Antonov aircraft Volga-Dnepr and ADB already provide AN-124-100 aircraft to support the Afghanistan mission, with weekly Inauguration of retraining centre sorties from Germany to Afghanistan and back, under contractual arrangements with the Allied Movement A NATO-supported Resettlement and Retraining Centre Coordination Center at Supreme Headquarters Allied was inaugurated in Khmelnytskyi on 15 February. Powers Europe. Moreover, a memorandum of Thanks to NATO's active support, the Centre is the understanding on strategic airlift between NATO and single largest provider of such assistance to retiring Ukraine is pending ratification with the Ukrainian military personnel in Ukraine. The aim of the project, parliament. Similarly, a framework agreement on air which is financed through a Partnership for Peace Trust transport and the necessary implementing arrangements Fund, is to help Ukraine deal with the consequences of is being developed with . Progress on the air defence reform and the downsizing of its armed forces. transport agreement with Russia is dependent on the Retiring military personnel from across Ukraine will ratification by the Russian parliament of the Status of benefit form various courses offered by the Centre, Forces Agreement (SOFA), signed by the Russian foreign such as marketing and computer systems and minister in April 2004. The SOFA provides a reciprocal technologies. Help in job placement is also being legal framework for the treatment of NATO and Partner provided through employment fairs and individual troops, including Russian troops, operating in or transiting counselling. The project is due to be completed over through one another's territory, covering issues related to three years with a budget of some €430 000. documentation, juridical questions, taxation, customs and other technical details. The ceremony was attended by Ronald Keller, the Ambassador of the Netherlands, which is the lead nation for the project, and by Ukraine's Deputy Defence Defence ministry works on Minister, Volodymyr Pasko, who expressed Euro-Atlantic integration issues appreciation for NATO's assistance. (For more information on NATO-Ukraine cooperation in The NATO-Ukraine Intensified Dialogue is based on a the field of retraining and resettlement of former military series of bilateral and multilateral meetings between personnel see NATO-Ukraine News 4/05.) Ukraine, NATO staff, and Allied representatives on Ukraine's aspirations to NATO membership and the related reforms required to achieve this objective. However, this effort can only be considered successful if it promotes an effective self-analysis by Ukraine regarding the current state of its reforms, the remaining shortfalls, and the additional efforts required to meet NATO standards.

At the NATO-Ukraine high-level consultations on defence reform and defence policy in Vilnius in October 2005, Ukrainian Defence Minister Anatoliy Grytsenko announced that his ministry would begin an intensive effort to conduct such an analysis regarding defence. He also indicated his interest in receiving assistance from Allied Helping Ukraine deal with the consequences of experts and the NATO Liaison Office (NLO) in to downsizing is a priority support this work.

5 The defence ministry undertook a major analytic Estonian legal framework in order to meet exercise in November 2005, under the leadership NATO requirements. of the ministry's department of defence policy The NLO continues to support Ukraine's ministries and strategic planning, but involving all major of defence, foreign affairs and justice in analysing defence ministry departments and General Staff and incorporating the feedback provided by

NATO-Ukraine News NATO-Ukraine directorates. The result was an initial assessment these and other such expert events. of the current situation and plans in the defence ministry as measured against information gained through the Intensified Dialogue, the experience Democratic oversight of NATO's newest members, and Ukraine's own of intelligence considerable experience in working with NATO on interoperability and capability Cooperation in the area of intelligence plays an requirements to improve the ability of the increasingly important role in NATO's efforts to Ukrainian military to operate with NATO forces in help its member states and Partners jointly meet peacekeeping missions. today's security challenges. As a community of democratic nations, the North Atlantic Alliance is In January of this year, the process moved into a also committed to the principle and practice of second phase. A one-day seminar at the NLO effective democratic oversight of the powerful tool brought NATO and Allied experts together with that intelligence provides. This oversight is the leadership of the relevant defence ministry important not only to ensure that intelligence and General Staff departments. The NATO team, services serve the interests of citizens; it is also led by the Director of NATO's Force Planning important for the services themselves, in order to Directorate, included representatives of the help them maintain the public support on which defence ministries of Bulgaria, Estonia, Lithuania their budgets and operational support depend. and Poland with relevant experience in preparing for NATO membership. Issues discussed included: It is important to ensure that • strengthening civilian defence management the intelligence services serve and oversight; the interests of citizens • improving the defence ministry's resource management and planning system; At the foreign ministers' meeting of the NATO- • restructuring defence forces in line with Ukraine Commission in April 2005, NATO missions and available resources; undertook to work more closely with Ukraine's • developing deployable forces capable of intelligence sector in the struggle against participation in NATO-led operations; terrorism. It also agreed to provide advice to • participation in current NATO-led operations; and Ukraine on reforming its intelligence sector in • strengthening internal mechanisms for accordance with Euro-Atlantic standards, NATO cooperation. including the strengthening of civil The open discussions provided considerable democratic oversight. feedback to the Ukrainian participants and established direct permanent contacts with To move ahead on that commitment, almost one relevant Allied experts. hundred officials and experts from Ukraine and NATO countries gathered in Kyiv on 19 December Similar consultations were held on 21 March with 2005 at a NATO-Ukraine roundtable on “Civil and experts of the “Visegrad Four” countries (the Democratic Oversight of the Intelligence Sector” Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia). (see NATO-Ukraine News 4/05). The event, And, on 16 February, the NLO hosted a workshop, symbolically held in the building, where experts from Estonia's defence ministry was the first time that the issue of strengthening shared their experience with experts from effective civil democratic oversight had been so 15 Ukrainian ministries on adapting the openly discussed in Kyiv, with the full participation

6 The Dutch Ambassador to Ukraine, the Commandant of the National Defence Academy and the Commandant of the NATO Defense College address Ukrainian officers during International Week in February

of Ukrainian parliamentarians and senior officials from the International Week National Security and Defence Council, Presidential Administration, and intelligence and law-enforcement The Ukrainian National Defence Academy and the NATO services. Discussions covered issues related to the role of Defense College organised the International Week in Kyiv parliament and central executive agencies in ensuring from 6 to 10 February. The purpose of this annual event is oversight of the intelligence services, as well as how to to familiarise Ukrainian officers with NATO and its policies, balance oversight with the secrecy required for to discuss the challenges facing the Atlantic Alliance and operational effectiveness. A number of specific issues its partners in today's security environment, and to were identified for future expert-level follow-up. highlight the value of the increasingly strong ties between Ukraine and NATO. The first follow-up step occurred already on The event was inaugurated by the Commandant of the 24 January 2006, with a seminar co-sponsored by the Ukrainian National Defence Academy, General Vitaliy George C. Marshall Center for Security Studies and the Hryhorovych Radetskiy, the Commandant of the NATO NATO Liaison Office in Ukraine. Speakers included the Defense College, General Marc Vankeirsbilck, former director of German Foreign Intelligence and the and Ambassador Ronald Keller of the Netherlands (the former Assistant to the US Secretary of Defence for Dutch embassy is currently NATO's contact point embassy Intelligence Oversight. Over 30 government officials, to Ukraine). parliamentary staff, and intelligence professionals discussed oversight of intelligence activity in more detail. The course offered during International Week is designed A key element in the discussions was the role and to meet the requirements of the Ukrainian National responsibilities of the intelligence community itself in the Defence Academy's curriculum, while also serving to oversight process, as well as lessons learned by countries enhance mutual understanding and achieve more fruitful that have recently become NATO members. cooperation. Eminent speakers from the NATO Defense College and other international agencies gave lectures on NATO's organisation and working methods as well as on international security issues, such as terrorism, weapons of mass destruction, and the role of religion in some of today's conflicts.

7 8

NATO-Ukraine News Information and DocumentationInformation Centre. theNATO of be heldin2006 withthesupport Three moreregionalAcademiesareplannedto civil society. aswellthedevelopment of diplomacy efforts public of andtheimportance security challenges; toaddresstoday's operations andefforts current NATO asdemonstrated in of transformation the countries; relationships withPartner NATO's cooperation and aspirations; membership Ukraine's IntensifiedDialoguewithNATO onits discussion included newglobalsecurityissues; of Topics onsecurityissues. academics andexperts exchange viewswithNATO and officials The Academy gave to studentstheopportunity inthethree-dayinvited event. totake part Romania andRussia werealso Poland, Estonia, StudentsfromBelarus, global securityissues. interestin shareaparticular andwho journalism, relations and Ukraine studyinginternational included studentsfromallregionsof Participants Future Prospects”. Cooperation and Current New Democracies: Securityand “NATO, focused onthethemeof The event Documentation CentreinUkraine. theNATO and Information of support withthe 2006, students from22to24February organised itsthirdyearly Winter Academy for Lviv The National Ivan Franko University of Winter Academy inLviv Better bodyarmour 80 kg/m The newmaterial willbelighter(about project. thestudiesinthis layers will betheobjectof these andmaterials of sequence, The thickness, underlyingplasticandglasslayers. sequence of bullet's impactenergywillbeabsorbedby a the The restof theimpactenergy. the majorityof andabsorb wouldshatter thebullet, which glass), sapphireorhighalumina (monocrystalline armour anultra-hardsurfacelayer for such production of The teamintendstodevelop atechnology for the material. bodyarmour a newgeneration of aims to develop which and Transparent Armours”, NATO Sciencefor Peace projecton“LightWeight Slovakia ona andUkraineareworking Russia, scientistsfromtheCzech Republic, A teamof dacdCrmc nTro,CzechAdvanced Republic. CeramicsinTurnov, out by SaintGobain layers willbecarried theunderlying The completionandproductionof Ukraine. inKharkiv, the Institutefor SingleCrystals thesapphirewillbe The producerandsupplierof over. theworld consumers an end-userpricethat willmake itattractive to thismaterial with at achieving massproductionof theteamalsoaims By optimisingthistechnology, produced (80mm). being protection asmaterial currently of providing while thesamelevel body armour, 2 ) andthinner(25-35mm)thanexisting Academy inLviv during the Winter academics andexperts NATO officials, security issueswith Students discuss The project was awarded a grant in November 2005 and is expected to be completed in Spring 2009. NATO's NATO-Ukraine: An Intensified Dialogue Science for Peace programme supports international An introductory brochure has been published, which collaboration between scientists in order to contribute to explains Ukraine's Intensified Dialogue with NATO security by applying cutting-edge science to on its membership aspirations and highlights problem solving. the extensive programme of cooperation with Ukraine. It is available in English, French, Ukrainian and Russian.

Gender and security

Yuri Pavlenko, the Ukrainian Minister for Youth, Family and Sports, opened an international seminar on “The Gender Aspect of National Security and Defence” in Kyiv on 2 March. The event was organised in the framework of the NATO-Ukraine Action Plan by his ministry in cooperation with the NATO Information and Documentation Centre. It was also supported by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the United Nations Development Programme, the Ukrainian ministries of defence and foreign affairs, and Ukrainian parliamentarians.

Discussions centred on gaining a new understanding of security through the prism of gender, as evidence which shows that men and women often have different experiences of conflict situations, and that their often differing security needs must be taken into account when engaging in peace-building, humanitarian assistance as well as in defence and security sector planning. An overview was given of NATO's efforts to mainstream gender issues in its work, whether through the NATO-Ukraine News aims to highlight different aspects of NATO’s development of behavioural guidelines for NATO cooperation with Ukraine. It is based on Novyny NATO, a quarterly peacekeepers, working to achieve gender balance and newsletter for audiences in Ukraine, which is published in both diversity in NATO structures, or through supporting the Ukrainian and Russian versions. recruitment and retention of women in armed forces with the participation of NATO experts by videoconference NATO Public Diplomacy Division from Brussels. Participants exchanged views on the 1110 Brussels, Belgium definition of gender, the role of women in politics Email: [email protected] and the as well as NATO Further information on NATO-Ukraine relations is available at : member states. (in English) www.nato.int/issues/nato-ukraine Considering gender in the security context was unusual (in Ukrainian) www.nato.int/ukraine for many Ukrainian participants and generated a lot of questions as well as media interest. In Ukraine, further information and publications are available from : NATO Information and Documentation Centre 36/1 Melnykova, 04119 Kyiv, Ukraine Tel.: +380 44 482 0616 / 17 Fax: +380 44 482 0622 Email: [email protected]

© NATO

9