Eurasia Press & News
NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen Monday said the Alliance summit in Wales, UK, on Thursday and Friday will address the challenges of a changed world.
“I expect it to be a crucial summit in NATO’s history. This is a time of multiple crises on several fronts. To the east, Russia is intervening overtly in Ukraine,” he told a pre-summit press conference in Brussels this afternoon.
“To the south, we see growing instability, with fragile states, the rise of extremism, and sectarian strife.” He announced that leaders of the 28-member Alliance will agree on a Readiness Action Plan “to respond to Russia’s aggressive behavior,” noting that Russia now considers NATO an adversary.
“The Readiness Action Plan will ensure that we have the right forces and the right equipment in the right place, at the right time. That also means more visible NATO presence in the East for as long as required. And it will make NATO fitter, faster and more flexible to adjust to all kinds of security challenges,” said the NATO chief.
Rasmussen said this Readiness Action Plan could include several thousand troops, ready to respond where needed with air, sea and Special Forces support.
NATO leaders at the summit, will meet with President Petro Poroshenko of Ukraine and take concrete steps to help Ukraine.
