NATO counterparts discuss security topics in Brussels

Defence Minister Martin Glvač attended a ministerial meeting of NATO member countries in Brussels on Thursday which covered a broad scope of issues. It's the first session of NATO defence ministers since the September NATO Summit in Wales. On the agenda in particular was the evaluation of the task fulfilment in the context of the Readiness Action Plan - a direct reaction to the changes in the security environment last year. Keeping that in mind, the NATO Response Force (NRF) will be reinforced, indeed, doubled to reach the size of a division. In the context of new forces, a NATO Very High Readiness Joint Task Force is to be created with a capacity of 5,000 soldiers. The response time for the deployment of these units is to be shortened as well, in some occasions to less than 48 hours after a threat to a NATO member appears. This requires intensive and regular training, Glváč indicated.