NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen visited Berlin July 2. 2014
“I am very grateful for Germany’s leading role in Afghanistan and in Kosovo. Your troops have done a remarkable job in the north of the country, as I saw for myself when I visited Mazar-e-Sharif. Across the country, security has created the conditions for a better Afghanistan and given the Afghan people the opportunity to develop their country and to decide their own future.”
NATO Secretary General with Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel. Berlin 02.07.2014 ©NATO
The secretary General continued: “At the end of the year, we will end our combat mission and turn a new page in Afghanistan. Germany has again taken a leading role in offering to be framework Nation in the new non-combat mission we are planning after 2014. Taking the lead in training, advising and assisting Afghan forces. Building on the many gains we have made.
Germany also plays a key role in keeping our collective defence strong. Both to our south, with a Patriot battery in Turkey, and to the east in the Baltic region. Germany’s commitment to international peace and security is clear.
Berlin 02.07.2014 ©NATO
“Of course, Germany’s defence priorities are for Germany to decide. But I would urge you, as I urge every Ally to give increased priority to your defence. As European economies recover from the economic crisis, so too should our investment in defence. Today, our world is more dangerous and more unstable than at any time since the end of the Cold War. By facing up to this reality, by investing in our own defence, and by standing together as one through the NATO Alliance, we will ensure our peace and security for another 65 years and beyond. ”
concluded NATO Secretary General ©NATO
©NATO/ZDF
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