NATO Secretary General is taking part in the the European Council on Thursday (29 June 2023), at the invitation of European Council President Charles Michel. The Secretary General praised the partnership between NATO and the European Union, which has reached unprecedented levels. He described it as key for continued support to Ukraine and in responding to other critical challenges.
The Secretary General welcomed NATO-EU cooperation on the resilience of critical infrastructure and today's release of the NATO-EU Task Force assessment report. He thanked the European Commission and the European External Action Service for the joint work with NATO on the report, which suggests concrete ways to further develop ties - including through more information exchanges; work to identify alternate transport routes for civilian and military mobility; and closer ties in security research.
The Secretary General also underscored the shared focus of NATO and the EU on the situation in Kosovo. He stressed that the NATO-led KFOR mission continues to implement its UN mandate impartially. He called on Belgrade and Pristina to avoid escalation and return to the EU-facilitated dialogue.
