12:30 GMT, October 27, 2009 At the meeting of the NATO Ministers of Defence in Bratislava, the Ministers voiced their support for the new vision for missile defence in Europe that was initially presented by the US, and discussed the future of the NATO Response Force (NRF).
US Secretary of Defence Robert Gates presented the ministers with the new Europe-wide missile defence plan, which received general approval by the ministers and the detailed proposals of which will discussed over the coming year.

“Reaching a consensus on the missile defence question is important for all NATO Member States and the door for co-operation is also open for Russia, which can now affirm its willingness to co-operate with actions,” said the Estonian Minister of Defence Jaak Aaviksoo.

The NATO Ministers of Defence also discussed questions relating to the NRF. According to NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe, Admiral James G. Stavridis, the adopting of the new NRF model has proven successful and it is hoped to be implemented completely in 2010. According to the new model, a unit of about 13 000 men will form the core of the NRF, which can be deployed to a crisis region within five to ten days. In addition to that, Member States will appoint additional military units with a preparedness of 10 to 30 days. In the coming years, Estonia plans to contribute up to a 40-man unit to the NRF.

“The success achieved through the re-design of the Response Force is extremely important for Estonia and forms part of Estonia’s collective defence,” said Mr. Aaviksoo.

The Ministers of Defence also discussed the financing of NATO activities, since increased operation costs have become a critical budget factor. The ministers approved the proposal by Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen to create an official workgroup, which will have to present by the end of 2009 proposals for resolving the budget issues.

At the meeting, the conclusions and proposals from the report by Commander of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) Stanley A. McChrystal were also approved and the ministers concluded that the decisions to increase the number forces operating in Afghanistan would have to be made soon.

The Ministers of Defence of countries contributing to Southern Afghanistan also met in Bratislava and concluded that the key to resolving the conflict in Afghanistan lies in resolving the problems in the country’s southern region.