Secretary-General: NATO weapons, ammunition stocks depleted

Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has said that the weapons and ammunition stocks are depleted and need to be replenished in many countries across NATO. 

He made the remarks in a speech at the economic conference "Day of German Industry" in Berlin, Caliber.Az reports, citing NATO's website.

"We also need a more robust defence industry, and some of you are present here today. Our weapons and ammunition stocks are depleted and need to be replenished, not just in Germany, but in many countries across NATO.

Last week I had the privilege of engaging in a productive meeting with defence industry representatives. We discussed how to best ramp up production, secure supply chains, and remove barriers to our cooperation. This is key to sustain our support to Ukraine and assure our own defences," Stoltenberg said.

Moreover, he stressed that NATO countries must reduce their dependence on supplies of critical resources from China and not export advanced technologies to China that could be used against Western countries.

"China is not our adversary, and we will continue to trade and engage with China. But at the same time, we must avoid dependencies that make us vulnerable. We must not rely entirely on China for critical raw materials and products. We must not export technology that can be used against us, or lose control of critical infrastructure, like 5G networks," the secretary-general noted.

Following the meeting of NATO defence ministers on June 15-16, Stoltenberg said that at the alliance's summit in Vilnius on July 11-12, a multi-year program of expanded arms supplies to Ukraine would be adopted, which would be implemented in full even in the event of an end to the conflict.