December 9, 1999 (3:30 p.m. EST) No. 266

AXWORTHY TO TRAVEL TO EUROPE FOR YOUTH, NATO AND G-8 EVENTS

Foreign Affairs Minister Lloyd Axworthy today announced that he will travel to Europe to participate in an educational event and two multilateral meetings. His first stop will be London on December 14. The Minister will then proceed to Brussels for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Foreign Ministers Meeting on December 15 and16. In Berlin, his last stop, he will attend the Group of Eight (G-8) Ministerial Conference on Conflict Prevention on December 16 and17.

In London, Minister Axworthy will meet with Robin Cook, the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs. Both Ministers will then officially launch Youth Links, a new Web-based learning tool on international issues that will link designated high school students in Canada with their counterparts in Europe. Mr. Axworthy will also participate in a roundtable with members of the Association of Foreign Affairs Correspondents and deliver an address to the Royal United Services Institute.

Minister Axworthy will then proceed to Brussels. On December 15, he will sign a Joint Declaration on the Strengthening of the Bilateral relations between Canada and Belgium with his Belgian counterpart, Louis Michel. He will also attend the first NATO Foreign Ministers meeting since last June, when the NATO-led Kosovo peacekeeping force (KFOR) first deployed to Kosovo. The NATO foreign ministers' agenda includes a review of the situation in Kosovo and Bosnia; follow-up on Washington Summit initiatives -- including those concerning weapons of mass destruction, non-proliferation, arms control and disarmament; and the development of the European Security and Defence Identity.

"This meeting provides the opportunity to ensure concrete follow-up to the Washington Summit, particularly in areas in which Canada has a strong interest and concern, such as the situation in the Balkans and arms control and disarmament," said Minister Axworthy.

The G-8 Ministerial Conference will build on discussions on conflict prevention held at the G-8 Summit in Cologne last June. Ministers will examine several issues which are integral to Canada's human security agenda and its work at the UN Security Council in the area of protection of civilians in armed conflict. These include small arms, child soldiers, civilian police capacity, and the impact on war economies of the illicit trade in high value commodities such as diamonds.

"I am very pleased that the last time the G-8 Foreign Ministers met, my colleagues were very supportive of integrating Canada's human security priorities in our work. I intend to build on this momentum in Berlin, particularly in light of the fact that conflict prevention is a key element of the human security agenda," added Mr. Axworthy.

During the trip, Minister Axworthy will also engage in a number of meetings with his counterparts in which he will raise other issues of international concern, including Chechnya.

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For further information, media representatives may contact:

Debora Brown

Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs

(613) 995-1851

Media Relations Office

Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade

(613) 995-1874