NATO foreign ministers' meeting to take place in Antalya

ANKARA

In this Dec. 2, 2014 file photo, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg gestures while speaking during a media conference prior to a meeting of the North Atlantic Council at NATO headquarters in Brussels. AP Photo

Turkey will host a NATO foreign ministers’ meeting in the southern province of Antalya between May 13 and 14.

Turkey previously hosted meetings of NATO foreign and defense ministers in 1994 and 2010 respectively, and the NATO Summit of Heads of State and Government in 2004.

On the sidelines of the meeting in Antalya, in addition to a North Atlantic Council session where the foreign ministers of 28 allies will engage in comprehensive consultations on major issues on NATO’s agenda, a series of other sessions will take place with the participation of the foreign ministries of partner nations. The decision on these additional sessions will be taken in the forthcoming months, in light of developments in international security.

The fact that this meeting will be held in Antalya demonstrates the importance that Turkey, as an ally of 63 years, attaches to NATO’s undertakings.

It is also taking place at a time of heightened risks and threats on NATO’s southern border, as the civil war in Syria and the advance of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levent (ISIL) continue.