LOC16:21
13:21 GMT
(With photo)
BRUSSELS, Nov 19 (KUNA) -- NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmusen
confirmed on Tuesday that the 28-member Alliance has given a positive response
to a Libyan request to help in developing its security structures.
"We have received a request from the Libyan government to assist the Libyan
authorities in developing their security sector and we have had expert teams
working with the Libyan authorities and we are now exploring how exactly we
can give that provide that assistance," he told journalists ahead of a meeting
with EU Defence Ministers in Brussels.
"We have given a positive reply to the Libyan authorities, and will
coordinate our assistance with the work of other international organisations
and also individual nations," he said.
About the destruction of chemical weapons in Syria, Rasmussen said "It's
not a discussion we have had in NATO, it is a national decision."
"The work on elimination of the Syrian chemical weapons is progressing
quite well. Clearly the UN and OPCW are in the lead of that work, and I can
also inform that we follow the situation in the NATO-Russia Council and
tomorrow we will get a briefing from OPCW, as well as an update from the UN on
the work being done," he said.
On Afghanistan, Rasmussen said "we know we still need to sort out a couple
of issues, but I'm quite confident that the Loya Jirga will give a go to the
Bilateral Security Agreement because the Afghans know well that it is a
pre-requisite for the deployment of a post-2014 mission to Afghanistan."
"This agreement has to happen between the USA and Afghanistan, and as far
as NATO is concerned, a Status of Forces Agreement which will hopefully follow
an approval of the Bilateral Security Agreement. I think that the Afghans know
that they will need continued training, advice and assistance of their own
security forces and it is necessary that we have a legal framework in place,"
he added. (end)
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