NATO News

On Wednesday 8 September 2021, the NATO Secretary General, Mr. Jens Stoltenberg, will participate in a virtual meeting of foreign ministers on Afghanistan co-hosted by the US Secretary of State, Mr. Anthony Blinken, and the German Foreign Minister, Mr. Heiko Maas.

The NATO Response Force (NRF) is supporting evacuation and relocation endeavours alongside Allies and the international community. "NATO is committed to evacuating NATO employees and their families, those people we served with in Afghanistan, to a safe and secure environment," said Major General Mead, Allied Joint Force Command Naples' Deputy Chief of Staff –Plans.

On Monday (6 September 2021), NATO’s Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoană welcomed Defence Minister Nitiwul of Ghana at NATO Headquarters. During their meeting, Mr. Geoană and Mr. Nitiwul discussed potential opportunities for cooperation between Ghana and NATO. They also exchanged views on current security challenges.

Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Monday (06 September 2021) said Allies must work more together to preserve the Non-Proliferation treaty, strengthen and modernise arms control, and respond to violations.

NATO’s highest Military Authority, the Military Committee, will meet from 17-19 September 2021, in Athens, Greece. General Konstantinos Floros, Chief of the Hellenic National Defence General Staff will host the Conference.

Admiral Rob Bauer visited Bucharest, Romania on 3-4 September 2021. He participated in the fifth edition of the Black Sea and Balkans Security Forum 2021.

On Monday, 6 September 2021, the NATO Deputy Secretary General, Mr. Mircea Geoană will meet with Mr. Dominic Bingab Aduna Nitiwul, Minister of Defence of the Republic of Ghana, at NATO Headquarters.

NATO and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark are jointly organizing the 17th Annual NATO Conference on, Arms Control, Disarmament and Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) Non-Proliferation on 6-7 September 2021, in Copenhagen, Denmark.

In a panel discussion at the Bled Strategic Forum on Thursday (2 September 2021), NATO’s Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoană said that a stronger European Union in defence can make the Alliance stronger, but will not replace it. He stressed the importance of the transatlantic bond in today’s unpredictable world and the value of NATO-EU partnership to address current security challenges.

On 1-3 September 2021, the NATO Deputy Secretary General, Mr. Mircea Geoană, will travel to Slovenia.

In a virtual meeting of Foreign Ministers from the G7 (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, UK, US) together with Turkey, Qatar, and the European Union on Monday (30 August 2021), NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the evacuation of over 100,000 people from Afghanistan was a historic operation executed under extreme duress. Thanking Allies and Qatar for their efforts, Mr Stoltenberg noted NATO’s role in coordinating evacuations and running Kabul airport operations, and emphasized the need to ensure safe passage for those who worked with NATO and those at risk who are still in Afghanistan.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg took part in the virtual summit of the Group of Seven (G7) on Afghanistan on Tuesday (24 August 2021). He stressed the importance of keeping Kabul airport open in order to continue evacuations. Mr Stoltenberg said that several hundred NATO staff and contractors have been providing critical services, such as air traffic control, fuel supply, and communications at the airport. He added that NATO has also taken on a coordinating role to ensure that people can be evacuated as effectively as possible.

On Tuesday 24 August 2021, the NATO Secretary General, HE Mr Jens Stoltenberg, will participate in the meeting of G7 Leaders, hosted virtually by the UK Presidency of the G7.

NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoana arrived in Kyiv, Ukraine on Monday (23 August 2021) to participate in the inaugural Crimean Platform Summit. Addressing the Summit, the Deputy Secretary General stressed that NATO stands with Ukraine and called on Russia to return control of the Crimean peninsula to Ukraine.

On 23-24 August 2021, the NATO Deputy Secretary General, Mr. Mircea Geoană, will travel to Kyiv, Ukraine.

On Thursday 19 August 2021, the NATO Military Committee convened a special meeting with its Resolute Support Mission Partners to discuss the ongoing situation in Afghanistan and the continued coordination of their common approach.

The North Atlantic Council met on Tuesday (17 August 2021) to discuss the situation in Afghanistan. ''NATO’s focus right now is to ensure the safe departure of personnel from Allied and partner countries, and of the Afghans who have helped us,'' said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.

On Tuesday 17 August 2021, the NATO Secretary General will hold a press briefing to provide updates on the situation in Afghanistan.