Opening remarks
by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the meeting of the North Atlantic Council in Defence Ministers Session - ''Projecting Stability''
(As delivered)
So welcome, good morning, I think we’re ready to start. Good morning
Yesterday we had a very substantial and good discussion addressing one of the main themes at the Summit: deterrence and defence.
Today, we will address the other main theme of the Summit which is projecting stability beyond our borders. These themes are interlinked.
Defending our people is not just about protecting our borders. It is also about projecting stability beyond our borders. Because a stable neighbourhood will help to keep us safe. We see this every day.
Conflict and extremism beyond our borders have driven millions of migrants and refugees to cross dangerous waters. And conflict and extremism beyond our borders have inspired terrorist attacks in our cities.
Today, we will discuss what more NATO can do. We will discuss how we can extend our training for Iraqi officers as they continue to fight ISIL. We will consider how we can provide direct support to the Coalition against ISIL with AWACS surveillance aircraft. And we will look at what NATO could do in the Central Mediterranean to help deal with the refugee and migrant crisis.
Because we saw that in the Aegean, our deployment is making a difference in support of international efforts to cut lines of human trafficking.
With that, let me thank the media for being at this first part of this session and we will continue the meeting in a moment.