Category: North Atlantic Treaty Organization

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NATO Secretary General meets Hungarian Prime Minister in Budapest

Source: NATO

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg met with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in Budapest on Wednesday (12 June 2024) to discuss preparations for the Washington Summit.

Mr Stoltenberg commended Hungary’s commitment to Allied security, including its leadership of a NATO multinational battlegroup; its hosting of military headquarters, including Multinational Division Centre; and its contributions to the KFOR peacekeeping mission in Kosovo. He further welcomed that since the start of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, Hungary has provided shelter for Ukrainian refugees and helped to rehabilitate wounded Ukrainian soldiers. “All of this contributes to our shared security, and I welcome your statement that you will remain a dedicated and loyal NATO Ally,” he said.

Mr Stoltenberg underlined that when Allies meet at the Washington Summit in July, he expects them to agree on a leading role for NATO in coordinating and providing security assistance and training for Ukraine, as well as a long-term financial pledge to provide military support. “Prime Minister Orbán has made it clear that Hungary will not participate in these NATO efforts and I accept this position,” he said. “At the same time, the Prime Minister has assured me that Hungary will not oppose these efforts, enabling other Allies to move forward, and he has confirmed that Hungary will continue to meet all of its NATO commitments in full,” the Secretary General concluded.

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Secretary General underlines B9 countries’ crucial role in strengthening NATO’s deterrence and defence

Source: NATO

Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg attended the B9 (Bucharest Nine) Summit in Riga on Tuesday (11 June 2024) to discuss preparations for the NATO Summit, as well as boosting support to Ukraine. The Summit was hosted by Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs and co-chaired by Polish President Andrzej Duda and Romanian President Klaus Iohannis.

Mr Stoltenberg emphasised the crucial role B9 countries play in strengthening NATO’s deterrence and defence. “You host our eight multi-national battlegroups; you have increased the readiness of your forces; you lead by example on defence spending; and you are at the forefront of Allied support to Ukraine,” said the Secretary General.

Mr Stoltenberg underlined that there should be no doubt about NATO’s ability to defend against any adversaries. “NATO has the forces, resources, capabilities, and the political will to defend every Ally,” he said. At the NATO Summit in Washington, the Secretary General said he expects Allies to take decisions to further strengthen NATO’s deterrence and defence, and agree on a greater role for NATO in coordinating training and equipment for Ukraine. 

Since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, NATO Allies have provided around 40 billion euros worth of military support to Ukraine each year. “We must maintain this level of support for as long as necessary to ensure fresh funding every year. Credible, long-term support sends a clear message to President Putin that he cannot wait us out,” the Secretary General underlined.

The B9 format was established in the aftermath of Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014. Nine Allies from the eastern flank take part in this format: Bulgaria, Czechia, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia. Finland and Sweden also took part in the B9 Summit in Riga.

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Joint press conference by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg with the Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor Orbán

Source: NATO

Prime Minister Orbán, Viktor, it’s good to be back in Budapest and to meet with you today.

Thank you for hosting me and my Delegation on the eve of a meeting of NATO Defence Ministers in Brussels later this week, and less than a month ahead of our important Washington Summit with the heads of state and government in July. 

Hungary has been a valued NATO Ally for 25 years. 

You lead one of our multinational battle groups helping to deter aggression. You host important military headquarters, including our Multinational Division Centre. You support stability in the Western Balkans, including with a significant contribution of troops deployed to Kosovo with our KFOR peacekeeping mission.

And since the beginning of Russia’s brutal war of aggression against Ukraine, Hungary has provided shelter to many thousands of Ukrainian refugees, and helped with rehabilitation of wounded soldiers.

All of this contributes to our shared security.

And I welcome your statement that you will remain a dedicated and loyal NATO Ally.

Today, the Prime Minister and I have discussed a number of important, and some difficult, issues. 

We also discussed the NATO Summit in Washington next month. 

At the Summit, we will take decisions on key issues including deterrence and defence. Since 2014, NATO has undergone the most significant transformation in our collective defence in a generation. We have put in place the most comprehensive defence plans since the Cold War, with more forces, more capabilities, and more investment. And we have deployed combat-ready troops to the eastern part of the Alliance.

We do all of this not to provoke a conflict, but to prevent a conflict. 

NATO’s core task is not to wage war, but to prevent war, as we have done for 75 years by providing credible deterrence and strong collective defence to ensure there is no room for miscalculation by Moscow, or in any other potential adversary about our capacity, as us all, to protect every Ally.

For 75 years, NATO has been the ultimate guarantor of security for our members. Providing peace, freedom and prosperity in the whole of Europe, not least in the countries or the former Warsaw Pact.

Prime Minister, you and I also discussed the situation in Ukraine.

At the Summit, I expect Allies will agree a leading role for NATO in coordinating and providing security assistance and training for Ukraine. I also expect Allies will agree long-term financial pledge to provide military support. This will provide the predictability and accountability that Ukraine needs.

Prime Minister Orbán has made it clear that Hungary will not participate in these NATO efforts.  And I accept this position.

And I’m glad that today the Prime Minister and I have agreed on modalities for Hungary’s non-participation in NATO’s support to Ukraine. 

No Hungarian personnel will take part in these activities and no Hungarian funds will be used to support them.

At the same time, the Prime Minister has assured me that Hungary will not oppose these efforts, enabling other Allies to move forward.

And he has confirmed that Hungary will continue to meet all of its NATO commitments in full. 

So, Prime Minister Orbán, thank you again for your hospitality. I look forward to continue working together with you. And I’m looking forward to seeing you in Washington. Thank you.

Moderator: Well, thank you very much, Secretary General, we have time for two sort questions. First, it’s the Hungarian national television.

Journalist, Hungarian Evening News (MTV): Thank you very much. Hungarian Evening News. Prime Minister, I would like to ask you what is the guarantee that Hungary will not be forced or coerced by NATO into any undertaking in Ukraine?

Viktor Orbán, Prime Minister of Hungary: [answers in Hungarian]

Moderator: Reuters.

Győri Boldizsár, Reuters: I’m Győri Boldizsár from Reuters News Agency. And I would like to ask Secretary General, Hungary’s Foreign Minister repeatedly called NATO’s Ukraine mission quote, crazy mission. How can you preserve the unity of the Alliance when a member uses –when a member chooses to use such words?

Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary General: Well in NATO we are 32 Allies and sometimes there are different opinions but we have proven again and again that we are able to overcome them and find common way forward. And on the increased NATO role in coordinating security assistance and training for Ukraine, I am glad that we have find a way to allow NATO Allies to agree that but at the same time, also accept the position that Hungary will not participate. It’s not a NATO obligation to participate in all NATO missions and the operations or activities as long as all NATO Allies adhere to the core obligations in the Washington Treaty, our collective defence, our security guarantees.

So, what the Prime Minister and I have agreed today is that Hungary will not block other Allies to agree a pledge for financial support to Ukraine and leading role for NATO in coordinating support for Ukraine, but at the same time, accept that [Hungary] will not be a part of these activities. And that’s a way which I think will work and I am confident that when NATO leaders meet in Washington, we will able then to finalise agreement on these issues.

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Meet Lieutenant General Ferenc Kajári, the first Hungarian KFOR commander

Source: NATO

Lieutenant General Ferenc Kajári understands the value of NATO better than most people. Two years ago, he led the Kosovo Force (KFOR), a NATO-led peace-support operation aimed to maintain peace and stability in Kosovo. Earlier in his career, in 1996, he was deployed to NATO’s peacekeeping mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina. He also contributed to Hungary’s accession to NATO in 1999. What was it like to live through these historical milestones? And what were his main goals when commanding the Alliance’s longest-standing mission, which is marking its 25th anniversary in 2024?

From IFOR partner to NATO Ally: witnessing Hungary’s milestones

“From an early age, I had the idea that I would serve my country,” says Lt Gen Kajári, who decided that he wanted to follow the military career path at the age of 12. “I wanted to have a job that would challenge me and bring me something new every day, and the military seemed like the best choice. When I look back at my career, I made the right decision – all posts that I have been assigned to have proved to be extremely rewarding and stimulating.”

Following his Military College graduation in 1988 and several postings in various Hungarian Defence Forces infantry brigades in Hungary, Lt Gen Kajári (at that point Captain Kajári) joined the NATO-led Implementation Force (IFOR) in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Alliance’s first major crisis response operation, in 1996. NATO deployed IFOR under a mandate by the UN Security Council after the signing of the Dayton Peace Accords in December 1995, which ended the 1992-1995 war in Bosnia and Herzegovina that followed the breakup of Yugoslavia at the end of the Cold War.

“This was the very first deployment of Hungary as a NATO partner under the Partnership for Peace framework,” he explains. “I was assigned to the engineer contingent that provided mobility in the area, both for the troops and for the local population, by building bridges and reconstructing roads. The deployment was a steep learning curve for all of us. We had to learn how to integrate into NATO’s activities, work in the operational area and coordinate with the NATO-led IFOR headquarters, all in an operation that had started just a year earlier. Back then, I was a young captain and IFOR was a valuable experience – after years of exercising, I could do what I had trained for.”

Participation in IFOR and the follow-on Stabilisation Force (SFOR) mission helped Hungary build closer ties with NATO as the country was on its path towards NATO membership in 1999. For Lt Gen Kajári, it marked the beginning of his involvement with the Alliance – but it was not his only engagement with NATO. As a member of Hungary’s working group on NATO accession, he witnessed first-hand the country’s progress on the military and civil reforms needed in order to become a NATO Ally. In 1998, he was nominated as a Partnership for Peace (PfP) officer at Allied Command Atlantic (ACLANT), one of NATO’s strategic commands at the time, where he continued to work on improving his country’s integration into the Alliance’s structures and exercises.

“When Hungary joined NATO in 1999 and I watched the Hungarian flag being raised at NATO Headquarters, it was an extraordinary feeling,” he says. ”Joining PfP five years before gave us a distant vision of becoming a member of the Alliance; the ceremony was a testimony to the progress that Hungary and other nations had achieved to be able to join the Alliance.”

Looking back at KFOR: Working with 28 countries for peace and stability

In October 2021, Lt Gen Kajári was appointed as the commander of the KFOR mission in Kosovo, which aims to ensure a safe and secure environment for all people living in Kosovo, according to United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 of 1999, and contributes to consolidate peace and stability. For a year, he led the mission’s more than 3,700 troops. He was also responsible for KFOR’s operational activities and dialogue among different stakeholders. As he says, one of the first things he learned was to understand that a commander is responsible for everything he has done and has failed to do.

“Being a commander is a multifaceted task,” he explains. “On the outside, it all seems to be about military and operational management, but it includes numerous protocol activities with local and regional representatives and the international community. To give you an idea, during my 360 days of deployment, I attended 354 meetings, delegation visits and ceremonial greetings,” he laughs.

While at KFOR, Lt Gen Kajári re-established one of the projects that he is particularly proud of: the publication of the KFOR magazine ‘4You’ in Braille alphabet once a year for visually impaired youth. This otherwise monthly magazine provides entertaining and informative content to young people in Kosovo and is distributed in local schools.

“We cooperated on this project with the Paralympic Committee of Kosovo. Together, we were able to share NATO and KFOR’s activities among a wider population and support children, youth and their families.”

As the first Hungarian officer to command KFOR, Lt Gen Kajári was eager to demonstrate the maturity of the Hungarian Defence Forces and their ability to take on similar leadership roles. However, he also had a personal goal: to avoid any injury among troops in his area of responsibility.

“I am happy to say that during the year of my deployment, there were no injuries or similar incidents,” he shares. “Even in heated situations, we were able to diffuse any tensions through negotiations and demonstration of our capabilities.”

The meaning of NATO: Strength, capability and opportunity

Commanding KFOR has been one of Lt Gen Kajári’s greatest professional highlights.

“The experience of being the commander of an operation led by the most powerful military alliance in the world is difficult to describe,” he says. “KFOR demonstrates what NATO is about: 28 Allies and partners with different backgrounds, cultures and national heritages joining together to achieve a common goal and provide safety and security.”

When asked what NATO means to him, Lt Gen Kajári uses three words: strength, capability and opportunity.

“By strength, I mean the power of the member states that form the biggest military defence organisation in the world,” he explains. “By capability, I understand it as an ability to defend the Allied territory and also strengthen stability outside of its borders. And by opportunity, I think of a two-fold possibility to improve, learn and be more effective, both in terms of member countries, but also individuals working for the Alliance. I am proud to be part of such an organisation and honoured to be one of the generals of the Alliance.”

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The Director General of NATO IMS visits Sweden

Source: NATO

On 3 June 2024, the Director General of the NATO International Military Staff (DGIMS), Lieutenant General Janusz Adamczak visited Sweden. While in Stockholm, he met with the Chief of Defence Staff of the Swedish Armed Forces, Lieutenant General Michael Claesson. The conversations centred around strategic security challenges and Sweden’s integration into the Alliance and the challenges facing.

This was the first DGIMS visit to Sweden after the country joined NATO in March. LTG Adamczak highlighted that Sweden offers significant and important military resources and capabilities and the pace of its integration and interoperability had been impressive – testament to the foundations set during nearly thirty years of Partnership with NATO: “Sweden’s accession has brought not only safety for Sweden but also major capabilities to the Alliance, which made NATO stronger and the whole Alliance more secure.”

Discussions of the two commanders focused on the key issues concerning Sweden’s membership in the Alliance, including operational perspectives, command and control arrangements, military implications of increased defence expenditure, workforce challenges and future engagements as well as Sweden’s contribution to NATO missions and operations. 

While in Stockholm, Lieutenant General Janusz Adamczak also participated in the Key Leader Seminar on the Gender Perspective in Military Operations, chaired by the Chief of the Norwegian Defence Staff, Lieutenant General Ingrid Gjerde. Remarks were also provided by Deputy Defence Minister from Ukraine Nataliia Kalmykova. Participants from 14 nations discussed different aspects of the Women, Peace and Security agenda, which is about how Men, Women, Boys and Girls may be affected differently by situations during conflict – and therefore, how we as military leaders, need to take account of these differences which, in-turn, ensures that our military assessments, plans and military actions, are calibrated to be as effective as possible, mindful of the circumstances we face. It is about understanding the Human Terrain of the battlespace – and then systematically considering if, and how, we might adapt. – underscored DGIMS in his address to the seminar. 

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Allied Chiefs of Defence meet virtually with Operational Partners

Source: NATO

On 11 June 2024, a NATO Military Committee in Chiefs of Defence Session took place virtually at NATO Headquarters in Brussels. Allied Chiefs of Defence met with their counterparts from NATO’s Operational Partners to discuss strengthening cooperation with Partners in NATO’s Operations, Missions and Activities.

This CMC initiative focused on strengthening Operational Partners’ engagement with Allies. The meeting reinforced that Partners’ participation in NATO Operations, Missions, Training and Exercises strengthens military capabilities and capacities for all parties involved. Cooperation bolsters interoperability, resilience and trust amongst NATO and its Partners. Cooperative Security is one of NATO’s three core tasks, and essentially underpins its other two core tasks: Collective Defence and Crisis Management. 

The session saw Supreme Allied Commander Europe General Cavoli brief on the new Partner Augmentation Forces to NATO framework (PAF-N). This framework is a mechanism for identifying a pool of Partners who may qualify for augmenting NATO Allies as force multipliers, in support of NATO’s three core tasks. 

Chair of the NATO Military Committee Admiral Bauer highlighted that the new NATO Strategic Concept stipulates the crucial role Partners play in supporting the Alliance’s 360-degree approach to security. Admiral Bauer emphasised how NATO and Partners work side by side to address shared security challenges and uphold the rules-based international order. Admiral Bauer underlined the importance of the Meeting of Allied and Operational Partners’ Chiefs of Defence within the context of the upcoming NATO Summit in Washington DC in July.

The meeting underscored the importance of continuing to invest in building relations with Operational Partners, in light of the rapidly evolving global security environment. Partner’s participation in NATO Operations, Missions and Training and Exercises, and leveraging two-way information sharing between NATO and Partners supports NATO’s three core tasks. 

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Joint press conference by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg with the President of Latvia, Edgars Rinkēvičs and the President of Poland, Andrzej Duda

Source: NATO

President Rinkēvičs, dear Edgars, thank you for hosting us. 

President Duda, dear Andrzej,
And also, President Klaus Iohannis,
Thank you for co-chairing this very important B9 Summit.

We have just finished important discussions on our preparations for the upcoming NATO Summit and how to further boost our support for Ukraine.
 
The B9 countries play a critical role in NATO’s strengthened deterrence and defence.

You host our eight multi-national battlegroups. 

You have increased the readiness of your forces. 

You lead by example on defence spending.

And you are at the forefront of Allied support to Ukraine.

 
Since 2014, NATO has implemented the largest reinforcement of our collective defence in a generation. 

We have put in place the most comprehensive defence plans since the end of the Cold War.

We have more troops on higher readiness, backed by substantial air and naval power. 

And there is increased defence spending across the whole NATO Alliance.

 
So let there be no doubt as to our ability to defend against any adversaries. 

NATO has the forces, resources, capabilities and the political will to defend every Ally.  

At the NATO Summit, I expect that Allies will take decisions to further strengthen our deterrence and defence. 

Agreeing to a greater role for NATO in coordinating training and equipment for Ukraine.

And committing to a long-term financial pledge. 

Since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, Allies have provided around 40 billion euros worth of military support to Ukraine each year.

 
We must maintain this level of support for as long as necessary.
To ensure fresh funding every year. 

Credible, long-term support sends a clear message to President Putin that he cannot wait us out. 

So, thank you so much for hosting me. It’s always a great pleasure to participate in the B9 meetings. Thank you.
 

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Doorstep statement by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg ahead of the B9 Summit in Riga

Source: NATO

NATO Secretary General: Good morning. It is great to be back in Riga. It is great to be attending the B9 meeting. I look forward to meet the heads of state and government together with the Finnish and Swedish representatives and the Swedish prime minister and the Finnish president.

The B9 is a very good platform to address current NATO issues and at the meeting today we will discuss the preparations for the upcoming Washington Summit, deterrence and defence. How to ensure that NATO continues to provide credible deterrence based on strong collective defence. And also, we will address how we ensure that we put support to Ukraine on a firmer and more robust footing.  So, Ukraine and deterrence and defence are the main topics for the meeting today. Then I am ready to take your questions.

Question: Is the absence of the Hungarian President in any way a warning sign or is it just a coincidence that the somewhat Pro-Russian president is not there?

NATO Secretary General: I leave it to Hungary to comment on that decision. What matters to me is that I expect all NATO Allies to agree on the way forward, both when it comes to further strengthening our deterrence and defence over the last years – also with the support of Hungary. We have implemented the biggest reinforcement of our collective defence.

And let there be no doubt, NATO is there to protect all Allies against any threat. And all Allies over the last years have also agreed to provide significant support to Ukraine and I expect that when we meet in Washington at the NATO Summit, NATO Allies will agree to give NATO a stronger role in coordinating support, but also agree on a long-term financial commitment. So for me what matters is that all Allies agree to make that decisions and I expect that this will be the case also on the Washington summit.

Question: inaudible.

NATO Secretary General: Well NATO and NATO Allies have made it clear from the beginning that we are ready to support Ukraine and NATO Allies have provided unprecedented support to Ukraine. But NATO Allies have also made it clear that we will not be party to the conflict. Meaning that we are helping Ukraine with ammunition or with training with military equipment.

And I urge Allies to sustain and step up that support and I’m confident that Allies will agree to do so. But at the same time NATO has not sent in combat troops. We are not part to the conflict. You need to remember what this is. This is a war of aggression. Russia attacked another country, attacked Ukraine. And Ukraine has according to international law, the right to defend itself. And we have the right to help Ukraine uphold the right to self-defence and we will do that in ways that doesn’t make NATO Allies a part to the conflict.

Question: inaudible.

NATO Secretary General: Well, I will be in Budapest tomorrow and will meet with Prime Minister Viktor Orban. That’s part of my task as Secretary General of NATO is to travel around NATO capitals and to meet NATO leaders and to ensure that we are able to agree as we have done at every NATO Summit over the last years and we will continue to do.

So I look forward to going to Budapest to sit down and discuss the agenda for the NATO Summit. That includes support for Ukraine and also how to further strengthen our deterrence and defense and then I will then meet the press tomorrow and I can tell you more about the meeting after we met.

Question: inaudible.

NATO Secretary General: I’m confident that NATO Allies will agree at the NATO summit. We have a defense ministerial meeting this week. I expect the NATO Allies will agree there too on the way forward, on the important decisions, both on deterrence and defence and Ukraine and I also expect that when we meet in Washington, we will agree on the way forward. So it’s not for me to comment on the B9, because I’m a guest here but I will be able to tell you exactly what we agree as NATO Allies.

Question: inaudible.

NATO Secretary General: NATO Allies are providing support to Ukraine in different ways. And again, we need to understand what this is: Russia has attacked Ukraine. Ukraine has the right to self-defence, and the right to self-defence includes the right to attack legitimate military targets on the territory of the aggressor. Russia is the aggressor that has attacked.

And especially now when Russia has opened a new front in the north in the Kharkiv region. They are launching attacks directly from Russian territory into Ukraine, with missiles, with artillery, with airstrikes. And of course, if Ukraine was not allowed to repel those attacks, by firing back on the batteries that are attacking Ukraine directly from Russian territory, then it will be the same as to ask Ukraine to defend themselves with one hand tied on their back. So this is about self-defence.

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Remarks by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the opening of the B9 Summit in Riga, Latvia

Source: NATO

Thank you so much President Rinkēvičs, dear Edgards. It’s great to be back in Riga and great to again, meet with you. And thank you for hosting this B9 Summit here in Riga. Many times also to the co-chairs, President Duda and President Iohannis, it’s also great to be able to sit down with you again. 

And then let me highlight, or underline, the importance of this platform, the B9, as a platform to address common security challenges and also how to further strengthen NATO’s Eastern flank. And of course, it is even more so an important platform with now also Finland and Sweden present around the table as full members of the Alliance. 

The meeting today provides us with an excellent opportunity to address the issues which are important as we prepare for the upcoming NATO Summit in Washington in July. To address how to further bolster our deterrence and defence. All of the Allies in the B9 framework, and also Finland and Sweden, are playing a key role in providing deterrence and defence. The B9 countries host NATO’s Battlegroups in the eastern part of the Alliance and you contribute to our collective defence in many different ways. And we are extremely grateful for that. 

The NATO Summit will then make important decisions on how to further strengthen our deterrence and defence and how to continue to step up when it comes to defence spending. Also, an area where the countries in this room actually are leading by example, all spending at least 2% of GDP on defence. 

We will also address how to put our support for Ukraine on a firmer footing. Ukraine needs long term support. They need a predictability, accountability. So therefore I expect that NATO leaders, when they meet in July, we will agree that NATO should lead the coordination effort of providing security assistance and training, and also agree a long term financial commitment to Ukraine. So once again, thank you so much for hosting the meeting. Thank you for inviting me. I look forward to the discussions.
 

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Remarks by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg after being awarded the Order of the 3 Stars by the President of Latvia, Edgars Rinkēvičs

Source: NATO

Moderator: In recognition of special service to the State of Latvia, and notable contribution to the strengthening of Latvia’s national security and defence, Chapter of Orders has decided to award the Order of Three Stars and the title of the Commander of the Cross of the Order of the Three Stars upon his Excellency Secretary General of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg.

President of Latvia, Edgars Rinkēvičs: Secretary General, thank you very much for your service and congratulations.

NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg: Thank you so much.

President of Latvia, Edgars Rinkēvičs: Dear Secretary General, it is a great honour for me and the whole of the Republic of Latvia to bestow on you the highest award of the Republic of Latvia, the Three Stars Order.

Actually, I think that it’s hard to realise that it is already 10 years since you are Secretary General of NATO.  And those 10 years have been, I would say, very challenging, very dramatic. But we are truly grateful for you, for your personal contribution, to strengthen the security and defence of Latvia, to strengthen the Alliance. (inaudible) I would say also it’s great to see during those 10 years the Alliance has expanded. And I just want to thank you and your team, the whole Alliance, for your contribution to the security and defence of this region of Latvia, and also for the strengthening of the whole Alliance.

NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg: Thank you so much Mr. President Edgars Rinkēvičs. It’s a great honour to meet you again, and a great honour to receive this Order, which I take as an expression of the relation to NATO that reflects the fact that NATO has adapted and changed. And we have strengthened our collective defence as a response to the fact that we live in a more dangerous world.

And it is really a privilege to serve as Secretary General of NATO, not least because it has been, and continues to be, a privilege to work with Allies, as Latvia. And also you, Mr. President, I worked with you also in a capacity as Foreign Minister for many years. And therefore, it is great to be back here today and to reconfirm the strong commitment of NATO to Latvia and to see once again how committed Latvia is to NATO.

President Edgars, thank you so much for your personal commitment to NATO, thank you for this Order. It is really a privilege to continue to work with you.