NATO Secretary General: NATO Summit in Madrid will be historic

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. Photo: AP

In an interview with Pais newspaper (Spain), Mr. Stoltenberg stated: "The Madrid Summit is decisive and transformative for NATO. This will be a historic summit for many reasons. First of all, the meeting of 30 allies will take place in the context of the biggest security crisis in Europe since the end of World War II. Second, the conference will be historic because we will make many important decisions. We will agree on the biggest transformation of collective defense since the end of the Cold War."

According to Mr. Stoltenberg, in addition to discussing the crisis in Ukraine, the NATO Summit is expected to address the topics of terrorism and instability in the North Africa and Sahel regions.

“We will step up our cooperation efforts with southern countries and approve a new aid package for Mauritania to help fight terrorism, control borders and strengthen defense and security,” he said.

The NATO summit will be held on June 28-30 in Madrid. As Secretary General Stoltenberg announced on June 19, member states will announce that Russia is no longer a partner of the alliance, but instead a “threat to peace and stability”.

In addition, NATO leaders will announce a decision on the deployment of new forces in Europe. NATO leaders are also expected to approve a new comprehensive package of assistance to Ukraine, including helping Kiev transition to NATO weapons to ensure greater compatibility of the Ukrainian military with the alliance.