RIGA, 30/11/06 - NATO has offered Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro a partnership for peace. This gateway to full membership of the military alliance was facilitated yesterday by an accommodating Dutch stance.

The Netherlands was of the opinion that Serbia must first cooperate better with the International Criminal Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia regarding the extradition of fugitive war criminals. At the NATO summit in Riga, however, the Netherlands gave up its objections to a partnership for Serbia. The US and UK had also had objections.

The 26 heads of state and government of the NATO countries say the invitation recognises the progress that Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro have made in recent years. Additionally, the partnership is important for "long-term stability in the west of the Balkans."

In the closing statement, the leaders also welcomed the reforms in Albania, Croatia and Macedonia. If these countries meet NATO's accession criteria, they can expect an invitation to become members of the military alliance in the course of 2008.