NATO Summit to begin in Istanbul today

Seven new members who joined the alliance this year – Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia – will be participating in a NATO summit for the first time. The summit is expected to begin with addresses by President Ahmet Necdet Sezer and NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer. During the gathering, the alliance’s military capabilities and defense plans will be discussed along with various other topics. NATO officials predicted that the summit would be a milestone in the alliance’s history. In related news, leaders from countries attending the meeting arrived in Istanbul yesterday.