NATO Secretary General holds talks with Russian leaders

Talks centered on the necessary work needed to implement the recent decisions taken by the 29 Foreign Ministers of the NATO-Russia Council (NRC), including a joint review of 21st century security challenges. Russian participation in international efforts to stabilise Afghanistan was also discussed in detail. The Secretary General then visited the Russian Parliament for talks with Sergey Mironov, Chairman of the Federation Council.

Later, Mr Rasmussen met with President Dmitry Medvedev at the Kremlin. In a friendly and open atmosphere, both statesmen talked about the new phase in NATO-Russia relations. They focused in particular on areas of common interest, where cooperation is based on a solid foundation of shared interest, such as Afghanistan and the fight against terrorism.

The Secretary General confirmed to the President that the relaunch of the NATO-Russian partnership remains one of his priorities at the helm of NATO. The last meeting of the day was held with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. Both leaders stressed personal responsibility for developing the partnership between the Alliance and Russia, as befitting two of the founding fathers of the NATO-Russia Council set up in 2002.

The Secretary General and Prime Minister Putin discussed extensively current European security issues, in particular the situation in Georgia and the CFE Treaty.