NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Thursday the alliance is ready to contribute to security building in Libya once conditions allow.
The NATO chief said he welcomed a Libyan cease-fire while speaking at a news conference.
“We have seen the presence of fighter jets and mercenaries financed by Russia and all the Russian military capabilities,� he said in response to a question about Russia’s military build-up in the region. “For NATO, it just highlights the importance of supporting the UN-led efforts to find a negotiated solution to the Libyan crisis.�
Russia’s heavy investment in new military equipment and increased military presence along the military alliance’s borders falls into a pattern, according to Stoltenberg.
It is not only present in Libya, “but in other parts of Africa, the Middle East, Syria, the Baltic region, and high north� he said.
The developments have caused “great concern� for NATO, but the alliance “follows and monitors very closely� and it invested in new capabilities “in response to a more assertive Russia,� he added.
By Agnes Szucs in Brussels
Anadolu Agency