Ladies and Gentlemen:

I am very grateful to you for the kind invitation to address you this evening. Our time is limited and I, therefore, want to outline, at the risk of some generalization, the foreign policy Challenges and opportunities briefly so that we have the time for a fuller discussion.

These are times of great change in the region of south-east Europe and they are also times when Greek foreign policy is moving towards a pro-active search for stability in the region and beyond. I will therefore outline how we see the environment in which we live; what are the principle challenges and, finally how we in Greece intend to carry out our foreign policy.

Some points of principle, first:

1. We believe that stability in our region is the pre-requisite for Greek security and we define stability to mean the practice of democracy, the strengthening of institutions, the reduction of economic inequalities and the rule of law. Our security lies in being members of the European Union and of NATO and we hope that other countries of the region benefit in the long run from the stabilizing influence of membership in these institutions. Their standards are ours and that is why we believe that they apply to all.

2. We believe that the institutionalizing and intensification of genuine democratic practice is the surest way of securing the rights of minorities - surely the greatest threat to international security - and minimizing the threat of boundary changes. Countries in which rights are honored are countries in which irredentism is not a threat, minority interests are honored and frontiers cease to be a bone of contention.

3. Finally, we believe that if these principles apply to our practice in our immediate geographical vicinity, it must also apply to a more aggressive incorporation of these principles globally, and, that Greece should participate more fully in these issues. This is all the more the case when we are confronted by the still uncertain effects of globalization. We do not believe that the poor of Africa, for example, must be taxed to stabilize the Balkans; and we also believe that peace in the tragic litany of civil conflicts must be attacked with consistency vigor and imagination. Drawing on the ancient traditions of Greece, I am pursuing a dream that we establish the practice of an Olympic Truce. I would like to build to the day when the ancient tradition of suspending all hostilities during Olympic competition is once again honored and, moreover, becomes the seed of a greater peace.

Dreams. Yes. But tempered, as is steel, by the fire of living in a region which has seen too much blood spilt in this century and where we have witnessed all too often, that saddest of sights: mothers who are condemned to outlive their children.

I do not need to elaborate at length on the profoundly significant events that have occurred in our region recently. Allow me, however, to offer you a glimpse of what we in Greece believe we see happening around us.

We have had a war in the Balkans: one community in Kossovo was violently and cruelly forced from its home, in unimaginable conditions and numbers. Another country, Serbia and to a much lesser, extent, Montenegro, was bombed so as to be systematically reduced to economic ruin. Neighboring countries’ stability was tested to the full. The Economic consequences of the last eight months have been ruinous. They have engendered new tensions both within and among nations.

But I also believe that these testing times have proven a rite of passage to greater wisdom, moderation and cooperation. We have emerged from this crisis -and it is not entirely over because we await the emergence of a stable democratic Kossovo within the existing frontiers of the Federal republic of Yugoslavia- with a sobering commitment to cooperation among the countries of the region, and, a keen awareness that only through cooperation among them can their path to participation in an expanded European Union be assured. In a region where we still know all too little about each other, we have been forced to become so much more familiar with each other and honest about our fears and shortcomings.
In the course of the conflict, Greece and Turkey, were confronted by the need to communicate on a wide variety of issues. I was in constant communication with my counterpart, Mr. Ismael Cem. Out of this emerged a warming between our governments, which led to a dialogue on a number of relatively uncontentious issues such as environment, tourism, culture, and security and business cooperation. In the last month relations have been given a further impetus by the heartwarming reaction of our two peoples to each other in times of tragedy.

I also believe that the management of our foreign policy in this crisis, balancing our obligations as members of NATO and the European Union with the reality of belonging to the region, offered Greece a new role of interlocutor in often-difficult moments. We intend to build on this.

The question remains, though: what are the real sources of instability in our region and how should they be attacked. We are, in many senses, a variation on a global theme in which democracy lacks sufficient practice; economies do not yet distribute their meager fruits fairly enough; and, where relations of political and military security still need to be developed.

Let me be more specific: the region of south eastern Europe still lacks that balance - that new social contract if you will - in which the states, the corporate sector (small and large) and the emerging civic sector are sufficiently strong within their own societies. They are thus not yet able to build the necessary links among themselves within countries and beyond frontiers with greater-confidence. I would argue that we still have much work to do on this in Greece, and, I have already committed Greece to drawing these institutions from our other neighbors in this process.

These, as far as I am concerned, are the foundations of future security in our region. These are what will diminish the crippling economic expenses of arms. These will remove the suspicions borne of ignorance among people.

With this in mind, we need to examine very carefully the many proposals for Balkan Stability that has recently been promoted. I will not speak to such issues as macro-economic stabilization or the establishment of rule of law nor institution building. These are self evident requirements in the region.

I want to highlight some issues, which are hinges around which the future progress of the region will turn. I should add that my comments apply as much to the development of future relations between Greece and Turkey.

First, we must ensure that the fundamental institutional bases of all our societies are strengthened and harmonized. Not only must we strive to build effective business communities, but also we must have application of rules on supervision of financial systems standardized in all the countries of the region. The media must not only be strengthened to provide credible reporting to the public, but it needs to be done in such a way that the reporting crosses frontiers and is used by the media of neighbors. Judicial systems equally need such efforts.

Second: we must be aggressive in ensuring that all forms of likely threat to security within and among our countries are dealt with directly, openly and with vigor. The way, in which the successive catastrophes of the former Yugoslavia have been allowed to creep up on us, must be changed. The question of minorities is of fundamental importance. Those who believe that the solution to a re-drawing of the Balkan frontiers to suit ethnic boundaries, I warn are taking the lazy approach, which would have tragic consequences. We live in a region where minorities are abundant. The answer does not lie in new frontiers but in securing the rights and protection of minorities within democratic systems. It also lies in developing a degree of cooperation among the countries of the region to be able to stave off the explosive consequences of un-controlled ethnic aspirations.

Third: there is a tendency in many countries of the region to think bilaterally. By this, I mean that they search first for the security of a relationship with such centers as Washington or Brussels, often at the expense of building regional relations. This tendency is nourished by the way in which multilateral institutions (like the EU or the World Bank) tend to manage their programs one a country by country basis. The long-term risk is that the so-called Balkan policies of these institutions could potentially further "balkanize" our region. We need to turn this on its head. We must encourage strategies which create incentives for investment in initiatives and programs that bind the region together indissolubly. I have heard of initiatives that would create a free trade area in the region. 'There are others which have moved beyond to mote sophisticated approaches. The challenge now is to assemble these ideas and pursue them in a coordinated fashion so that the future of the region is not lost in a cacophony of rival proposals.

Fourth: I cannot emphasize enough the cultural diversity of our region. We have rampant nationalisms, which still feed our schoolchildren with suspicion and, even, hate. We have religious divisions that are easily manipulated. In the long run, I believe that we will have overcome many of the obstacles in our region when we re-write our textbooks so that our children can grow in an atmosphere where, at the very least, they understand and respect the fact that another person from another country may view the same historical fact from a different perspective. Elementary, you may say. But it is seminal, if we are to move towards a climate of prosperous coexistence. It is equally true that we must develop a stranger understanding among the religions of the region and, also, between the Orthodox Churches of the region anal the institutions of Europe.

The principles that I outlined at the beginning of this talk are as applicable to our relations with Turkey ands beyond. There have, indeed, been profound historic differences between Turkey and Greece. The cycle of reciprocal suspicion has become both paralyzing and dangerous. As I have indicated, however, I believe we are in a new phase. This is not merely a function of circumstance. It fits with our overall principles on which we base our foreign policy. Communication is better than silence: dialogue with substance must substitute for the dialogue of the deaf: Equally, we have indicated that we believe that Turkey can and should embark, formally on the path to candidacy in the European Union. The road to that achievement is a long and arduous one, which requires profound political courage to take significant steps to meet the stringent requirements of membership in the European Union. We encourage Turkey to engage in this process.

We believe that it is in our interests, in the region's interests and in Turkey's interests to achieve this goal and we are ready to help in this.

Our task is not an easy one. We believe that Greece has crossed an important threshold in its foreign policy. We are developing a policy founded on patience. We believe that the incremental intensification of ties is ultimately more productive than actions driven by expediency. We believe that our states must open the path to the development of ties that engage all segments of society. This is as true of our region as it is for so many other parts of the world fraught with instability and insecurity. The experience which we are gaining, we assure you, we plan to project beyond our comer of the globe.

Thank you.