BRUSSELS, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg met King Abdullah II of Jordan at NATO Headquarters on Monday for talks on the Alliance?’s partnership with Amman and regional security challenges.
The Jordanian King participated in a meeting of the North Atlantic Council on the level of ambassadors, addressing security challenges facing the Middle East and North Africa, including the conflict in Gaza, said a NATO statement.
“NATO is monitoring the situation in the Middle East very closely. We are deeply concerned about the situation in and around Gaza. Israel has the right to defend itself, at the same time, the protection of civilians is essential and I welcome efforts to ensure that humanitarian aid reaches Gaza,” Stoltenberg said.
“Iran and Hezbollah should not take advantage of the conflict. It is important that this situation does not escalate further,” he added.
Stoltenberg welcomed that NATO Allies are continuing to implement the defence capacity-building package for Jordan, including support for counter-terrorism, cyber security and crisis management.
Jordan joined NATO?’s Mediterranean Dialogue partnership forum in 1995 and is one of NATO?’s closest partners in the region, he noted.
“NATO greatly values its partnership with Jordan and I thank King Abdullah for his personal leadership at this critical moment. Today we need dialogue more than ever. NATO is fully committed to supporting our partners in the region, including through the Mediterranean Dialogue, to contribute to stability and security in the Middle East and North Africa,” Stoltenberg said.
Source: Kuwait News Agency
