NATO Secretary General calls for closer cooperation with EU

NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg called for closer cooperation between NATO and the EU on accelerating the production of ammunition and defense equipment needed to replenish national stockpiles.

On May 23, Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Jens Stoltenberg, attended the conference of defense ministers of European Union (EU) member countries in Brussels (Belgium).

At the meeting, NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg stressed the unprecedented scale of support from NATO allies and partners for Ukraine.

He also called for closer cooperation between NATO and the EU on accelerating the production of ammunition and defense equipment needed to replenish national stockpiles.

Mr. Stoltenberg also mentioned NATO's special role in setting standards for all member states, with each country required to meet defense capability goals, and maintaining regular contact with manufacturers.

NATO is expected to hold an informal meeting with major European and North American industrial groups on the sidelines of the NATO defense ministers' meeting on June 15-16 in Brussels, with the participation of EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell and European Commissioner Thierry Breton.

NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg stressed the importance of NATO-EU cooperation in resilience and protection of critical infrastructure, in particular with the established Joint Task Force.

In this regard, in January, NATO and the EU established a joint task force to strengthen the protection of critical infrastructure.

The decision comes after the Nord Stream gas pipeline leak last year and as NATO and the EU seek to boost cooperation amid the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

At that time, European Commission (EC) President Ursula von der Leyen said that the joint task force, bringing together experts from the EU and NATO, was tasked with studying vulnerabilities in critical infrastructure systems and advising on measures to better protect these infrastructures.

Meanwhile, the NATO Secretary General said that the two sides want to jointly consider how to make critical infrastructure, technology and supply chains more resilient to impacts. This will be an important step to strengthen and increase the safety of NATO member states as well as the EU./.

Huong Giang (VietnamPlus)

Source link