Teodor Atanasiu, Minister of Romanian National Defence will participate December 5 and 6, 2005 in the South East Defence Ministerial (SEDM) in Washington DC, USA.

During the reunion there will be talks on stage and perspectives of SEDM initiative deveploment within the regional evolutions. A special issue on the agenda will be the SEEBRIG engagement in international missions.
Ukraine's join to SEDM process will occur during the papers sign ceremony.

Minister Atanasiu will have bilateral meetings with his counterparts from SEDM states and the US Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld.

The SEDM aims, launched in March 1996, are the promotion of regional cooperation and neighborliness, increase of defensive capacity and cooperation by collective efforts, and facilitation of the processes of integration in the Euro-Atlantic institutions.

The participant states to this initiative are Albania, Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, FYROM, Romania and Turkey. As observers, Croatia, Slovenia and US participate in the political and military consultations.
SEDM-CC and PMSC presidency and SEEBRIG command for two years, by rotation, are held by each of the participating countries.

SEDM and SEEBRIG receiving presidency ceremony occurred in July 1, 2005, in Constanta harbor where the SEEBRIG Command is for the period 2003-07. Now the presidencies are held by Albania and Bulgaria.

Details: www.seebrig.org.

MoND Press Office