(MENAFN- QNA) For his part, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has called for deeper political and practical cooperation with Gulf partners in his keynote address at the North Atlantic Council – Istanbul Cooperation Initiative seminar here.
Bahrain, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and hosts Qatar, the four partner of the ICI, joined ambassadors of NATO's 28 countries at the seminar to mark 10th anniversary of this partnership.
In his address during the opening session of the conference, Stoltenberg said, "The launch of the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative sent a very strong signal that security and stability of Gulf region is important to NATO. Just as the security and stability of the Euro-Atlantic area is important to the Gulf."
He mentioned Qatar was among the first countries to establish a close practical relationship with NATO.
As well as regular consultations, we conduct a wide range of practical cooperation. From military training and education to crisis management, he said.
"For 10 years, NATO's relations with the Gulf partners have grown deeper and stronger. And this is good, because the more we cooperate, the safer we will be. We need to protect our sea lanes, energy supply, and critical infrastructure, and cyber-networks, stop the trafficking of people and drugs.
"Earlier this year, Kuwait became the first of our Gulf partners to conclude an Individual Partnership Cooperation Programme with NATO. I hope that Qatar and other Gulf partners will soon follow suit," the secretary general said.
The seminar is being held in Doha not only to celebrate ten years of the partnership but also for a discussion of shared security challenges including terrorism and extremism, notably the threat of Daesh, which, Stoltenberg said, "poses a grave threat to the Iraqi and the Syrian people, the wider region, and all of our nations."
"Dealing with this threat demands a long-term, multinational effort. It must integrate political and economic measures, as well as military action. And we welcome that the United States has rallied nations behind such a broad coalition," he added.
The conference also tackles the issues of maritime security, and cyber security and possible ways to address them together. Ambassadors will take stock of the partnership to date, and consider the road ahead.
Today's conference follows the North Atlantic Council's visit to Amman, Jordan earlier in the week, where the Secretary General and ambassadors marked the 20th anniversary of the Mediterranean Dialogue partnership.
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