KABUL - Concluding their two-day meeting in Brussels, NATO defense chiefs on Friday said an early agreement with Kabul on troop legal framework post-2014 would be better for the continuation of the alliance’s planning.
“There are no doubts about our commitment to Afghanistan post-2014, as part of a broad international community effort. So the sooner the legal framework is agreed on, the better it will be for the continuation of our planning,” Gen. Knud Bartels the Chairman of the Military Committee, told the meeting.
The annual meeting at the NATO headquarters acknowledged the value of the Cooperative Airspace Initiative and the Afghan Helicopter Maintenance Trust Fund.
“These are both very positive achievements which demonstrate the tangible benefits of our cooperation,” emphasized Gen. Bartels.
The chiefs of defense expressed their full support in the implementation of the Connected Forces Initiative (CFI), calling it crucial after 2014, when the ISAF mission ends in Afghanistan.
They expressed their commitment to support Exercise Trident Juncture 2015, a milestone for the Connected Forces Initiative and NATO.
At the NATO-Russia Council with military representatives, the meeting approved the 2014 Work Plan and agreed to continue to explore areas of mutually beneficial cooperation, such as counter piracy, counterterrorism, search and rescue at sea, logistics and medical support.
In the KFOR session, NATO and partner chiefs of defense shared an optimistic view of the security situation in Kosovo and endorsed a series of benchmarks and indicators which set the basis for the consideration of KFOR’s future role and structure.
They highlighted the important of the Smart Defense approach and agreed to focus attention on key projects, which are associated with the capability shortfalls identified in the NATO Defense Planning Process, such as Joint ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance & Reconnaissance) and Ballistic Missile Defense.
They concluded with a discussion on NATO’s activities in the maritime domain, during which they noted the alliance’s important role in respect of countering terrorism, piracy and emerging global threats. (Pajhwok)