Secretary General discusses Baltic security with Latvian President
NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organisation
24 Nov. 2017
NATO's continued adaptation to meet current security challenges and preparations for NATO's 2018 Summit topped the agenda in talks between NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Latvian President Raimonds Vējonis in Brussels on Friday (24 November 2017).
The Secretary General strongly welcomed the decision by Latvia's parliament yesterday to strengthen Latvia's national defence, including by increasing defence spending to 2 percent of GDP by 2018 and by investing in modern capabilities. Mr Stoltenberg also thanked Latvia for its significant contributions to the Alliance's shared security, including by contributing to NATO's training mission in Afghanistan and for its support to NATO partners Georgia and Ukraine.
In response to Russia's illegal annexation of Crimea, NATO deployed four multinational battlegroups to the Baltic States and Poland for the first time in 2017 and increased air and naval patrols in the Baltic region. Mr Stoltenberg stressed that NATO's enhanced presence sends a clear signal that NATO stands ready to defend any ally against any threat.
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