Opening remarks
by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the start of the meeting of the North Atlantic Council at the level of NATO Defence Ministers
(As delivered)
So good afternoon, I think we are ready to start, and welcome to all of you. Welcome to this meeting of NATO Defence Ministers.
We face a wide range of complex challenges: terrorism and turmoil in the Middle East, a more assertive Russia, cyber-attacks, and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile technology.
Neither Europe nor North America can deal effectively with these challenges on their own. That is why a strong NATO is as important as ever and why we must continue to invest to keep our Alliance strong.
NATO has responded with speed and determination to a changed security environment. We have significantly strengthened our deterrence and defence. We are working with partners to project stability beyond our borders. And after years of cuts, we are now starting to increase defence spending across the Alliance.
This afternoon we will take stock of how far we have already come and discuss what more NATO must do to keep our nations safe.
The decisions we take over the next two days will help prepare for the NATO Summit in May and determine the future of our transatlantic Alliance.
And this ends the public part of this meeting. I thank the media for being present and taking very nice pictures of all of us, it can’t be better.