As NATO looks at its future role,

an important element will be

how it works with others.

Can NATO solve all global problems?

I don’t think so.

It’s not NATO’s mission first,

and secondly,

we are not that powerful.

I think it’s vital

for NATO to understand,

and in this strategic concept,

to clearly lay out,

that we live in a world

where one organisation

or one country no longer can deal

with the challenges. Alone we'll fail.

Cooperation with partners has to vary

by conditions and individual cases.

NATO is not the only organisation.

It is a basic pillar of international

security, of our national security.

There are... activities

that no-one can replace NATO.

On the other hand, there are

many issues of global impact

where NATO is one of many actors.

It is not a kind of digital answer.

This is for NATO,

and this is not for NATO.

I think sometimes something is...

NATO should be in the lead,

a maybe kind of sole entity

to face this threat.

Sometimes maybe NATO is hardly

involved but may be still contributory.

But there is probably

a large middle group.

And NATO has to work with

and not just for other organisations.

If NATO would be the sub-contractor

of all these institutions

then you could put

NATO’s headquarters

into a service centre in Bangalore

where a friendly voice answers

the phone by saying, basically:

Thank you for calling 1-800-NATO.

For an air-lift operation, press 1.

For stability operations, press 2.

This is not NATO's job.

The level of cooperation with

some organisations, such as the EU,

has not been optimal.

Failure to improve these ties

could lead to grave consequences.

If, for instance, NATO and EU

doesn’t get its acts together

in Afghanistan, people will die.

And it will be French,

like Germans, like Americans,

like Poles, like Canadians who die.

So therefore, we cannot afford

these beauty contests any more,

which for many years prevented

a more efficient cooperation.

I see no explanation, no excuse,

for the current level of co-operation

between NATO and EU for example.

We are based on the same values.

The close cooperation

between these institutions just to get

the civil and the military effort

in Afghanistan together, is inevitable.

But that’s

much easier said than done.

And the co-operation does not need

to be limited to increased

cooperation.

Non-NATO countries can play

important partner roles too.

NATO today is a global institution

without being the global cop

or the world policemen.

NATO’s global role does not mean

that the membership is global.

The interests are global,

so the horizon has to be global.

That’s why NATO needs partners.

Calling for new partnerships is

not new.

There is not much strength

in the finger of one hand.

But when five fingers are balled

into a fist

you have a considerable

instrument of defence.

All of us are also ready

as conditions change,

to turn that fist

into a hand of friendship.

But the partnerships

in dealing with global problems

could lead to a change

in major relationships.

After some very hard work,

Russians should

and can apply to NATO.

Of course it will not be called

North Atlantic Treaty Organisation,

but Atlantic Pacific

Security Organisation or whatever.

But we should aim to do that in view

of all the difficulties and dangers

and catastrophes

which are in the making,

in the Middle East, in Afghanistan,

in Iran, in North Korea, etc.

On all of those issues

work together, with nuances,

each looking for its little advantage

but basically work together.

I think that without partnerships

some of the problems

are simply not solved.

Partnerships have proved

crucial in Afghanistan.

NATO will have to develop

for greater challenges in the future.

NATO has a huge number

of global partners.

Countries like Australia or

New Zealand, which are like-minded,

political, and which fight

side-at-side in Afghanistan.

So NATO will need

and is developing very efficiently

a network of these partners.

Good cooperation

with different entities

and good cooperation

with non-NATO countries,

I think it is a no-brainer

that in the future world

that is even more important

than it was twenty years ago.

One of the ways

we’re going to maximise our impact

on international affairs is through

cooperation with organisations,

be they regional

like the EU or the African union,

or global like the UN,

that’s the future of this alliance.