The Alliance has made good progress these last few years in enhancing cooperation with all its EAPC Partners, and especially those in the Caucasus and Central Asia, NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer stated when addressing NATO PA, NATO press service reports. "We have made the new security challenges a major focus of our cooperation. We are helping interested countries to introduce defense reforms and enhance their interoperability with NATO. And just last week we held the first EAPC Security Forum in Sweden, a new initiative to engage NATO and Partner officials and civil society representatives in a free-flowing discussion of the many common challenges before us", Mr. Scheffer said.