March 5, 2009
No. 59
The Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Foreign Affairs, participated in a successful NATO foreign ministers’ meeting in Brussels, which addressed a number of key issues.
“I had a very constructive dialogue with my NATO counterparts today in the lead up to NATO’s 60th anniversary summit to take place in Strasbourg, France, and Kehl, Germany,” said Minister Cannon. “We had substantive discussions on a range of issues, including NATO’s relationship with Russia and the NATO-led mission in Afghanistan—a top priority for NATO and for Canada.”
NATO’s International Security Assistance Force mission in Afghanistan demonstrates the important role that NATO can play in contributing to peace and security beyond the Euro-Atlantic region.
During his visit to Brussels, Minister Cannon also attended an informal working dinner of NATO and European Union foreign ministers. He also held a number of constructive bilateral meetings with the foreign ministers of the United Kingdom, France, Italy, the Czech Republic, Croatia and Latvia, with the NATO Secretary General, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, and with the EU High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy, Javier Solana.
Canada is strongly committed to NATO and views this alliance as the primary forum for security consultation and cooperation between Europe and North America.
For more information on Canada and NATO, please visit: www.international.gc.ca/nato-otan/.
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