MEDIA ADVISORY Advisory # 001-03 <br /> Jan. 15, 2003 <br />NATO Seminar Open Road 2003 will focus on‘U.S. Transformation Implications for the Alliance’Norfolk, VA “Open Road 2003,” the first major meeting discussing NATO’s new military transformation after the November 2002 Prague Summit, will take place January 20-21 at the Portsmouth Renaissance Hotel in Portsmouth, VA. This year the theme of the annual seminar is “U.S Transformation implications for the Alliance.” The seminar seeks to tackle the issues of transforming NATO forces for the future and to stimulate open discussion on transformation and how NATO will continue to work towards joint integration and interoperability with U.S. Forces.Several hundred senior members from all NATO Alliance nations will be attending keynote speeches by transformation experts such as the Department of Defense’s Director, Force Transformation, Vice Admiral Arthur K. Cebrowski (Ret.) and former U.S. House Speaker, the Honorable Newt Gingrich. Guest speakers are expected to include Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld; NATO Military Chairman, General Harold Kujat; Supreme Allied Commander, Atlantic, Admiral Ian Forbes; Deputy Supreme Allied Commander, Europe, Admiral Rainer Feist; Commander, Joint Forces Command, Admiral Edmund Giambastiani; Norway Minister of Defense, Krohn Devold, and; Romania Minister of Defense, Ioan Mircea Pascu.NATO is undergoing a major transformation that will enable creative solutions to the operational challenges of coalition warfare against the new threats. Supreme Allied Command Atlantic (SACLANT), in Norfolk, VA, will transition to Allied Command Transformation (ACT) and will lead NATO’s military transformation, ensuring NATO forces are jointly integrated and interoperable with U.S. Forces. NOTE TO MEDIA: Media will be allowed unprecedented access to keynote speaker sessions (Remarks). The Press Center will be open for Media Credentialing at 5 PM on Sunday, Jan. 19 at the Renaissance Hotel. Media should be credentialed and at the Hotel on Monday, Jan. 20 no later than 8:30 a.m. and then on Tuesday, Jan. 21 at 8:30 a.m. ·While the keynote speaker sessions are open to media attend, there will be no opportunity for Q&A during the speaker sessions and working seminars are closed to facilitate open discussion amongst the members. Separate media interviews may be possible upon request and based on the availability of the speakers.·Due to the stature of the speakers and attendees of the seminar, security is tight and media attending should expect to go through a rigorous security search, so please plan accordingly. Equipment will be limited to one camera per crew and media should not expect to be allowed to move about freely. ·Media interested in attending should contact the SACLANT Public Information Office at (757) 445-3235 or 3233 as soon as possible.