Remarks by President of the European Council Donald - TopicsExpress

Remarks by President of the European Council Donald Tusk following his meeting with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg It is my pleasure to welcome my old friend, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg in my first days in office. Our meeting signals the importance of the transatlantic link and co-operation between the EU and NATO. This partnership is about peace, security and democracy. And it is about practical co-operation on the ground and about working together on the major security challenges that both the EU and NATO face to the East and to the South of our borders. Jens and I agreed that the crisis in Ukraine has fundamentally re-shaped the European security environment. These changes challenge the foundations of the international order after the Cold War. If we are to find a political solution to the crisis, the Minsk agreement must be fulfilled. Any solution must be based on respect for Ukraines independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity. Russia has a special responsibility here: it must withdraw from eastern Ukraine, stop supplying troops and equipment, allow for effective control of the border and let the OSCE carry out its mission. The EU and NATO will continue to work closely together in Ukraine, in full respect of their mandates. We also discussed the fight against fanatic extremism. Today, the anti-ISIL coalition is meeting in NATO premises, though not under NATO auspices. The European Union fully supports the anti-ISIL coalition. I explained to Jens that the EU is working on a longer-term strategy for the region. This strategy will bring together the EU and Member States and will also address the root causes of this regional crisis. Finally, we also discussed our longer- term co-operation. The European Council of December 2013 and the NATO Wales summit set ambitious goals: Maritime Security, Cyber Defense, Capability Development. We agreed to work together on all these issues. To conclude: Today we had a good, even excellent, first meeting. This is important. And even more important than good personal relations are the strong transatlantic relations and the links between the EU and NATO. Thank you.