Jens Stoltenberg opposes the creation of an independent EU army

Photo: nato.int

On September 5, in an interview with The Telegraph, Secretary General of the North Atlantic Alliance Jens Stoltenberg said that the creation of armed forces independent from the United States in Europe would cause a split among NATO allies.

He welcomed Europe's additional defense efforts, but noted that they could never replace NATO. “We need to make sure Europe and North America unite,” he added.

Stoltenberg expressed confidence that any attempts to weaken the link between North America and Europe will cause not only a weakening of NATO, but also a split in Europe.

Earlier, before the summit of the heads of diplomatic and defense departments of the European Union in Ljubljana, the head of European diplomacy Josep Borrell expressed confidence that what happened in Afghanistan demonstrates the need for Europe to build its own independent army.