NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Schaefer said Wednesday that the organization needed to adapt to new challenges posed by globalization, DPA reported. In a speech marking the 50th anniversary of the German Atlantic Association, De Hoop Scheffer said it was necessary to reevaluate the trans-Atlantic security concept. One of the reasons for this, he said, was the spread of international terrorism, which had become "a threat without a face." The NATO chief, who also met with Chancellor Angela Merkel and Defence Minister Franz Josef Jung, said there was a need to develop a strategy to prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction. NATO had no desire to play the role of a world policeman but was "the right tool" and a "global partner" for a new international security partnership, he said. De Hoop Scheffer said strengthening the alliance and NATO's role in Afghanistan would be the main themes of the NATO summit in the Latvian capital Riga November 28-29. The secretary-general said Afghanistan was NATO's most important mission and called on the entire international community to remain engaged in the country. He stressed that stabilisation required not only a military component, but effective contributions in civil areas and development. De Hoop Scheffer said he would welcome increased coordination between NATO the UN, EU, G8 and other organizations in the area of development and reconstruction.
