Issued by: The Department of Foreign Affairs
Consistent with the mandate of the Durban NAM Summit which calls for increased dialogue with important economic groupings in the industrialised world, the NAM Troika of Foreign Ministers, led by Foreign Minister Alfred Nzo, held wide ranging discussions with the European Union Troika, led by the Austrian Foreign Minister, Mr Wolfgang Schussel, in New York late yesterday.
The NAM Troika, which includes Colombia and Bangladesh, took the opportunity to raise critical economic issues of concern to the developing world, including the current global financial crisis, development assistance and the problem of external debt. The Ministers also discussed the issue of disarmament, United Nations reform, the International Criminal Court, international organised crime and narcotics trafficking, as well as the political and security situations in Africa and the Middle East.
The Foreign Ministers underscored the importance of creating a mechanism to ensure a more structured and regular dialogue of this nature and agreed that this matter would be followed up their officials.
ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS PRETORIA 25 SEPTEMBER 1998