NATO Heads of State and Government Summit kicked off earlier today in Madrid, Spain. The summit will last two days and was opened by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. Stoltenberg welcomed all participants and thanked Spain for hosting the summit in his opening remarks.
“This Summit will take important decisions to strengthen NATO in a more dangerous and competitive world where authoritarian regimes like Russia and China are openly challenging the rules-based international order. We will demonstrate that NATO’s door remains open by inviting Finland and Sweden to join our Alliance.” Stoltenberg said during the opening speech. Addressing the situation in Ukraine during his speech, Stoltenberg said, “We will adopt a more comprehensive assistance package for Ukraine. And sustain our unprecedented support for the country’s self-defense to ensure that Ukraine prevails. I am glad that President Zelensky is joining us today.”
Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez, who took the floor in the opening speech, expressed their pleasure for hosting the NATO Summit and for Türkiye lifting objection of the membership of Finland and Sweden. “I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the presidents of Türkiye and Finland and the PM of Sweden for the agreement reached yesterday. It will open door to accession of two important democracies into our alliance having met the security concerns of all allies,” Stoltenberg said.