NATO launches an ambitious agenda for Lisbon Summit
Today, the NATO Secretary General, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, opened the meeting of Heads of State and Government in Lisbon, stating that it will be one of the most important summits in NATO’s history.
He emphasised that at Lisbon “we will define the direction the Alliance will follow in the coming 10 years, a decade during which NATO will be more effective, more engaged in the world and more efficient than ever before."
The Secretary General outlined an ambitious agenda for the next two days, including launching the process for transition to Afghan-led security, a fresh start in relations with Russia and the aspiration to agree to cooperation on territorial missile defence for Europe.
He stressed that with the new Strategic Concept "we will develop modern capabilities, to defend against modern threats" and that "we will reach out to partners around the globe".
"We will make a fresh start in our relations with Russia, with the aim of building a strategic partnership," he said.
The Secretary General also highlighted that "we will streamline the Alliance to make it more efficient, by cutting fat and investing in muscle, so that our taxpayers get maximum security for the money they invest in defence."
"For all these reasons, this will be one of the most important Summits in NATO's history," he concluded.
The Summit in Lisbon will continue through Saturday with meetings of the NATO Heads of State and Government. Additionally, ISAF Troop Contributing Nations will discuss Afghanistan and the NATO-Russia Council will convene.