Nato chief 'confident of US commitment' to alliance

By Ahmet Gurhan Kartal

LONDON (AA) - NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Thursday said he is “absolutely confident that “the US is committed to NATO and the transatlantic bond.”

Speaking at a joint press conference alongside British Prime minister Theresa May in London following a meeting, Stoltenberg said “the U.S. commitment to NATO is not only words but also in deeds.”

“Action speaks louder than words and we see that now the U.S. is strengthening, increasing their presence in Europe,” he said.

Stoltenberg added that he believes that the leaders of the 29 NATO member states would look into how to “further strengthen that transatlantic bond” at the July summit in Brussels.

Also speaking on the transatlantic bond, British Prime Minister Theresa May said there are a number of issues “we disagree with the U.S. […] we disagree for example […] on the Iran nuclear deal […] but the relationship is we are able to come together and discuss these issues.”

“Just as in NATO, we are able to come together and discuss how we can continue to work together and continue to cooperate together for the benefit of all, for the future,” May said.

British premiere said a range of issues discussed during the meeting with the NATO chief “underlines why NATO is as vital now as it ever has been.”

May said the U.K. exceeds NATO’s spending target of 2 percent of the GDP by each member states and deploys thousands of troops in Poland, Estonia, Romania, Iraq and Afghanistan.

“I am proud that whenever the call comes from NATO the U.K. is one of the first to respond. But while we step up we cannot allow NATO to stand still,” May said.

- 'Progress on modernising NATO'

“So today the Secretary-General and I welcome the progress made on modernising NATO while recognising that there is more to do.”

Trump in January 2017 sharply criticized NATO in an interview with German daily Bild, calling the organization “obsolete”.

He argued that NATO had failed to address terrorism and today’s challenges.

"NATO had problems. Number one it was obsolete, because it was, you know, designed many, many years ago. Number two -- the countries aren’t paying what they’re supposed to pay,” he had said.

A threshold to spend 2 pct of the GDP by the year 2024 has been agreed by all member states, a target which is still to be reached by all member states.