Secretary General addresses 2016 NATO-Industry Forum
NATO officials and representatives of the defence and security industry gathered on Wednesday (9 November 2016) for the annual NATO-Industry Forum, this year held at the Palais d’Egmont in Brussels. The event was attended by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, European Union High Representative Federica Mogherini and EU Commissioner Elżbieta Bieńkowska.
In a press conference on the margins of the Forum, the Secretary General stressed the importance to NATO of a close working relationship with the private sector, and underlined the importance of a “strong defence industry, a strong European defence industry and a strong North-American defence industry”.
The NATO-Industry Forum is the premier venue for strategic dialogue with the defence industry on NATO capability planning and development. Discussions help NATO and industry to better understand each other’s needs, and therefore to develop the tools and capabilities the Alliance requires.
Addressing the Forum’s plenary session, Secretary General Stoltenberg said that the knowledge, skills and ingenuity of the defence industry make it possible for NATO Allies to have the best equipment, and the most advanced capabilities in the world.
Chaired by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, the Forum is co-organised by Supreme Allied Commander Transformation General Denis Mercier, and NATO Assistant Secretary General for Defence Investment Camille Grand.