Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed attends NATO meeting

Foreign Minister Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed bin Mohammed Al-Khalifa today attended the meeting of the NATO foreign ministers and the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISSAF) in Afghanistan at the NATO headquarters in Brussels. The session reaffirmed support for Afghanistan beyond 2014, in line with the UN goals and principles to help build and state of law and institutions. Addressing the meeting, Shaikh Khalid stressed the importance of the cooperation bonding Bahrain and NATO, stressing the Kingdom's contribution to the international peacekeeping efforts in Afghanistan. He hailed the coordination between Bahrain and the US in this regard as part of concerted international efforts to ensure a better future for Afghanistan. The minister urged regional cooperation to be stepped up to confront dangerous challenges – such as terror, drug trade, and organized crime. He welcomed the results of the International Conference on Afghanistan, recently held in Bonn, Germany, stressing the necessity to create favorable conditions to implement the recommendations towards promoting peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan. The NATO secretary general Anders Fogh Rasmussen delivered the opening speech welcomed Bahrain as a new member of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISSAF).