WASHINGTON, May 10: US President Barack Obama has met with the NATO Secretary General, Anders Fogh Rasmussen to discuss the security situation in Afghanistan, ahead of the NATO Summit scheduled later this month.
Obama met the NATO top official to discuss the final preparations for the summit the US President will host in Chicago and the decisions related to Afghanistan that would be taken at the Summit.
“The President and Secretary General Rasmussen agreed that the Summit would focus on three important topics: Afghanistan, defense capabilities, and partnerships,” the White House said in a statement.
On Afghanistan, Obama and Rasmussen agreed that the NATO Summit should reaffirm allied commitment to the transition framework agreed to at Lisbon, while planning for the final stages of that transition—including a shift next year from combat to a support role, as well as enduring support for sufficient and sustainable Afghan forces.
Obama and Rasmussen also agreed that the Summit should highlight the commitment of allies to field the defense capabilities that NATO needs for the 2st century.
“They discussed their expectation that allies would be in a position to announce progress on a number of key capabilities initiatives, including on missile defense,” the White House said adding that the two discussed the importance of NATO’s partnerships with non-NATO countries.
“NATO is now a hub for a global network of security partners which have served alongside NATO forces in Afghanistan, Libya, and Kosovo.
Recognizing the important contributions provided by partner nations, the President and Secretary General welcomed the recent decision by allies to invite a group of thirteen partner nations to Chicago for an unprecedented meeting to discuss ways to further broaden and deepen NATO’s cooperation with partner nations,” the statement said. (PTI)
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