NATO Secretary General, German Chancellor discuss preparations for NATO leaders meeting
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg thanked Germany for its outstanding contributions to NATO in talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin on Thursday (11 May 2017). The two leaders discussed preparations for the upcoming meeting of NATO leaders in Brussels on 25 May, where burden sharing and fighting terrorism will top the agenda.
In response to a changing security environment all Allies in 2014 agreed to stop the cuts in defence spending and move towards spending 2 percent of GDP on defence within a decade. “Burden sharing is not just about money”, the Secretary General stressed; “it is also about modern capabilities and contributions to NATO missions and operations. Germany makes key contributions on all these aspects.”
Turning to the fight against terrorisms, Mr Stoltenberg recalled that NATO has been active in this field for a long time, with its biggest mission in Afghanistan. NATO is also training forces in Iraq, and supporting the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIL with AWACS surveillance planes. “Training local forces is a key tool against terrorism,” Mr Stoltenberg said. “We will discuss what more NATO can do when we meet in Brussels on May 25”.
The Secretary General is also holding talks with members of the SPD party parliamentary group as part of his continuing engagement with German parliamentary parties. His agenda also includes an address on the Koerber Stiftung think-tank on current security challenges.