NATO Secretary General visits Spain to prepare Madrid Summit

In his talks with Prime Minister Sánchez, along with Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares Bueno Defence Minister Margarita Robles Fernández, Mr. Stoltenberg expressed his gratitude to Spain for hosting the next Summit.  He noted that the Summit will mark the fortieth anniversary of Spain’s accession to NATO.  “This accession anchored Spain among the free and democratic countries of the transatlantic community, and also paved the way for your country’s membership in the EU a few years later,” said Mr Stoltenberg.
 
“We need to keep adapting for the future. And that is exactly what we will do at the Madrid Summit next year,” the Secretary General said. At the meeting, leaders will take important decisions to implement the ambitious NATO 2030 agenda, Mr. Stoltenberg stressed, including boosting the Alliance’s resilience and cyber defences, sharpening its technological edge, and addressing the security impact of climate change.  NATO’s next Strategic Concept will also be adopted at the 2022 Summit, the Secretary General pointed out. “The Madrid Strategic Concept will reflect the new security environment, recommit to our values, and reaffirm our  unity. Ensuring that our Alliance is fit for the future,” he said.  

The Secretary General thanked Spain for its strong commitment to NATO, including its contributions to NATO’s training mission in Iraq, NATO’s multinational battlegroup in Latvia, its jets in the Baltic Air Policing  mission, and numerous maritime deployments.  “Spain is also a strong supporter of NATO’s partnership with the European Union.  NATO-EU cooperation has reached unprecedented levels in the past years”, said Mr Stoltenberg.