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Assemblée parlementaire de l'OTAN
HomeMEDIA RESOURCES20119 September 2011 - REMEMBERING 9/11 – STATEMENT BY DR KARL A. LAMERS, PRESIDENT OF THE NATO PA
9 September 2011 - REMEMBERING 9/11 – STATEMENT BY DR KARL A. LAMERS, PRESIDENT OF THE NATO PA
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Dr Karl A. Lamers, President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly issued the following statement today: “As we commemorate the tenth anniversary of the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001, on behalf of the members of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, I would like to assure the American people that we have not and will never forget the thousands who lost their lives on that fateful day, those who were injured, and all the families of the victims who carry with them daily a sense of pain and suffering. I would like to once again express our deepest, heartfelt sympathy to them. |
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On this sad anniversary, our thoughts and prayers are also with the victims of all terrorist attacks around the world and their relatives. The attacks of 9/11 were an attack not only on the United States, but on the principles and values shared by the entire community of democratic nations. Shock and outrage at such a despicable act of senseless violence against innocent civilians brought us all together regardless of nationality, ethnicity or religion, in a spirit of solidarity, and in a unanimous condemnation of extremism in all its forms. The invocation by NATO’s North Atlantic Council of Article 5 of the Washington Treaty on 12 September 2001 - the first time in the Alliance’s history - marked a clear expression of the Allies’ solidarity with the United States, and a renewal of their commitment to the principles and values which lie at the foundation of the North Atlantic Alliance. Ten years later, the Allies’ continued military engagement in Afghanistan is further evidence that our nations share a common determination to prevent that country from ever again becoming a safe haven from which terrorists can inflict the pain and suffering witnessed on 9/11. The tenth anniversary of the September 11th attacks naturally brings the international community together in a spirit of remembrance. However, it should also give us an opportunity to reflect on what has been achieved. The wide-ranging measures our nations have taken since 9/11 have ensured that, collectively, we face the future better prepared. The spirit of unity and solidarity that brought us together on 11 September 2001 needs to continue to guide our actions. Side by side, we will continue to defend with determination and resolve the universal values of openness, tolerance and human dignity. These will not be shaken or undermined by terrorism.” |
