(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) BRUSSELS, June 30 (KUNA) -- NATO Secretary General Jens Stolteberg Tuesday stressed that the Alliance needs a global approach due to the changing security environment in the world.
"One of my main message is that NATO must become more global," he told the German Institute for Global and Area Studies based in Hamburg by video link from Brussels today.
He cited three examples of why NATO needs a global approach, COVID-19, terrorism, and the rise of China.
"First, COVID-19. A global crisis that shows how something that started on the other side of the world can have huge consequences for us all. Also in NATO," he said.
"NATO is currently preparing for a possible second wave of the coronavirus. We have agreed on a new operation plan to provide support to our Allies and partners," said Stoltenberg.
He said "the second reason why NATO needs a global approach is the instability and terrorism beyond our borders citing our experience in Afghanistan."
"Of course, NATO must be able to intervene with large numbers of combat forces when we need to. But prevention is always better than intervention. By focussing on training and building local capacity, by being a training alliance, we can reduce the likelihood that we will ever have to intervene," he stated.
He said the international community has made great progress against ISIS.
"ISIS no longer controls territory in Iraq or Syria. But it remains a threat. We must do all we can to support our partners," he said.
"And a third reason why NATO needs to take a more global approach is the rise of China. China will soon be the largest economy in the world. It is a global leader in new technologies. And it also has the worldآ's second largest defence budget," said the NATO chief.
"So it is important to continue to engage with China. China is not an adversary to NATO. But we must fully understand what its rise means for us and for our security," he added. (end)
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