AT Monitoring Desk-KABUL: The foreign ministers of NATO countries have gathered in the Belgium’s capital city Brussels to discuss important security issues including the Syrian war and Afghan mission also called the “Resolute Support”.
Addressing the pre-ministerial press conference, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Monday that the US and other partner countries decided to have presence in Afghanistan throughout 2016.
According to Pajhwok Afghan News, the NATO member and partner countries would discuss a wide range of pressing international issues in the meeting which would be held today (on Monday).
A source close to the NATO’s civilian office in the war-hit country told Pajhwok that the foreign ministers of 40 countries would attend the today’s summit.
Afghanistan’s Foreign Minister Salahuddin Rabbani and the NATO’s civilian representative in the country Ismael Armaz have left for Brussels already to attend the meeting.
US Commander of NATO Forces in Afghanistan, Gen. John Campbell, would address the summit via video conference to brief the participants over the security situation in the country.
In the two-day meeting, the NATO foreign ministers would also discuss Afghanistan’s security and extension of the “Resolute Support” mission beyond 2016.
Jens Stoltenberg and Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu met on Monday and discussed the crisis in Syria and last week’s incident which led to the downing of Russian Air Force aircraft.
“All Allies fully support Turkey’s right to defend its territorial integrity and its airspace. I welcome Turkey’s efforts to establish contacts with Moscow and through its contacts with Russia, to de-escalate the situation. It is important to stay calm and to calm tensions,” the NATO’s secretary general said after the meeting.