PRAGUE, Nov 21: In a historic transformation of Europe’s security landscape, Nato leaders on Thursday invited seven former communist adversaries to join the alliance.

As US President George W. Bush pressed for Nato backing for disarming Iraq, Nato leaders announced they were opening the doors to new members — Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia.

All seven will be admitted as Nato members in 2004 after being formally approved by all 19 current members.

    “This round of enlargement will maintain and increase Nato strength,” said Nato secretary-general George Robertson.    

In an implicit reassurance to Russia which has voiced wariness at Nato’s expansion, Robertson insisted that alliance enlargement was “not directed against the security interest of any partner state.”

Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic joined Nato in 1999.

   Nato’s first summit behind the former Iron Curtain also has Iraq high on its agenda, amid warnings from Bush that Baghdad risked the “severest of consequences” if it failed to come clean on weapons of mass destruction.

   But Nato is not expected to make any joint moves on Iraq, leaving it to members to forge bilateral cooperation alliances with Washington.

Another key summit goal is the creation of a 20,000-member Nato rapid response force for high intensity warfare anywhere in the world. Rogue states or terrorist groups would be the main targets of such a force.

    The new mission of global policeman marks the transformation of Nato from a post-Cold War defence pact aimed at the former Soviet Union to an alliance designed to fight modern security threats, including terrorism.