NATO Secretary General praises Slovakia’s contributions to NATO
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed Slovak Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Peter Kažimír to NATO Headquarters on Thursday (12 April 2018). The leaders met to discuss preparations for the upcoming NATO Summit in July.
The Secretary General praised Slovakia’s contributions to NATO missions and activities, including the Alliance’s Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan, the NATO battlegroup in Latvia and training in Iraq. “I recently visited Iraq where I met Slovak trainers that help train local security forces,” said the Secretary General. He also underscored Slovakia’s support to partners, such as Ukraine, and welcomed the country’s commitment to spend 2% of GDP on defence by 2024.
The Secretary General and Prime Minister Pellegrini also discussed the situation in Syria. They strongly condemned the use of chemical weapons in Syria and called on the Syrian regime to allow full access to international medical assistance and international monitoring. “NATO considers the use of chemical weapons a threat to international peace and security. And those responsible must be held accountable. We must do all we can to protect the ban on the use of chemical weapons,” stressed the Secretary General.