North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Allied Command Transformation
December 5, 2014
General Paloméros at the European Parliament
On the occasion of the launch of European parliamentary work, Supreme Allied Commander Transformation (SACT), French Air Force General Jean-Paul Paloméros was invited to address one of Parliament’s subcommittees on Security and Defence.
On this occasion, SACT said: “The urgent need for European Nations to stop the budget cuts and to reinvest in their Defence has been stressed by the Heads of state and Government in Wales. Therefore, the Allies pledged to spend 2% of their Gross Domestic Product on defence and 20% of their defence budget on inventions including those related to Research and Technology. […] there will remain a crucial need to invest these future resources very smartly in a concerted manner both inside the EU and NATO,” he said.
General Paloméros confirmed by his intervention that the European Parliament on many occasions showed its attachment to the role of NATO as a guarantor of stability and security in Europe and the world, and as a forum of transatlantic dialogue. He pointed out that it now is time to deepen the relations between NATO and the EU, two organisations that are united by a strategic partnership, as reaffirmed at the Chicago Summit, and to strengthen the mutual cooperation between European respective institutions.
The European Parliament supports the idea of developing a more intense partnership between NATO and the European Union in view of reinforcing the security interests of the Euro-Atlantic area, while respecting the independence of both organisations [sic].
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