WASHINGTON – NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg met with President Barack Obama on April 4 to discuss a range of issues, including terrorism around the globe. In remarks after their bilateral meeting, both leaders noted their continued support of Ukraine and commitments to NATO allies in the face of a more assertive Russia
According to the transcript released by the White House, Office of the Press Secretary, President Obama said:
“…We continue to be united in supporting Ukraine in the wake of Russian incursions into Ukrainian territory. We continue to work in a train-and-assist fashion in helping support Ukraine develop its military capabilities defensively. We continue to provide reassurance to the frontline states there, our NATO allies, to make sure that they have not just reassurance of words, but that we have actually deployed concrete assets that let them know that Article 5 means something, and that we stand by our commitments to our allies. And I have in my budget put forward a quadrupling of the resources that we spend, and allocated a portion of that money to make sure that we’ve got ground brigades that send a clear message about our commitments to our NATO allies to the east.
“That does not mean that we are not continuing to work with Russia to try to find resolution to the problems in Ukraine. We think it is important to maintain a dialogue, and NATO has continued to consult with Russia and, in very transparent fashion, indicate the firmness of our resolve to protect our values and our allies, but also our interest in being able to reduce tensions and the dangers of potential escalation. …”
Secretary-General Stoltenberg stated:
“…We are also responding to a more assertive Russia, responsible for aggressive actions in Ukraine. And I very much welcome, again, the leadership that you have shown in increasing our collective defense in Europe with the European Reassurance Initiative, which is, as you’ve proposed, going to be quadrupled in the budget you have proposed for the Congress.
“This is really a strong example of the trans-Atlantic bond, how the United States is important for the security of Europe and also over European allies – or the European allies are also stepping up, so together, we are now implementing the biggest reinforcement through our collective defense since the end of the Cold War. …”