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Afghanistan in the spotlight at NATO meeting

The imminent expansion of NATO's peacekeeping force in Afghanistan will be the focus of a meeting of NATO Defence Ministers in Brussels, 8 June, with Afghan Defence Minister Wardak taking part.

Non-NATO countries that contribute troops to the mission - including Australia and New Zealand - will also be taking part, the first time ever at a meeting of NATO Defence Ministers.

The expansion, scheduled for this summer, will see NATO significantly extend its presence and role in Afghanistan, moving into the South of the country and taking on additional tasks.

"It will be an opportunity for the Allies underline their commitment to the mission, and an opportunity for them to confirm that they have the capabilities and will and the plan to carry out the mission," John Colston, NATO's Assistant Secretary General for Defence Policy and Planning told reporters.

Operations and transformation

In addition, NATO Ministers are expected to discuss the way ahead for the Alliance's operations and missions in Darfur, Iraq and Kosovo.

Ministers will review also the transformation of NATO's forces to meet today's security requirements.

In particular, they will look at the progress in setting up the Alliance's high readiness, high capability Response Force, which is due to be fully up and running in October this year. Once it is fully operational, the force - numbering up to 25,000 troops - will be able to take on the full range of missions anywhere required at very short notice.

Meetings with the Ukrainian Defence Minister, and with Defence Ministers of the Alliance's Partner countries, are also scheduled.

This meeting is one of the building blocks leading up to the November meeting of NATO Heads of State and Government in the Latvian capital Riga.

Source: NATO