The two-day meeting of the NATO Mediterranean Dialogue-Policy Advisory Group (MD-PAG) took place on Monday and Wednesday, November 10 and 11. The meeting was hosted by Greece, in Athens, with Deputy Foreign Minister Kyriakos Gerontopoulos declaring the opening of the proceedings.

The meeting was attended by representatives from the 28 member states of the Alliance and the 7 Mediterranean Dialogue partners (Egypt, Algeria, Jordan, Israel, Morocco, Mauritania and Tunisia). The initiative for holding the meeting was taken within the framework of Greece’s strong and longstanding interest in contributing practically to and enhancing regional security and stability in the wider Mediterranean region. Moreover, it is part of Greece’s broader strategic thinking regarding this specific region, including the advancement of synergistic approaches, in tandem with the rejection of hostile and destabilizing conduct.

The meeting was a complete success with regard to the achievement of the goal of further building of mutual understanding between the countries on the two sides of the Mediterranean, via sincere and open dialogue on matters of common interest. This mutual understanding is the foundation for the efforts towards promoting enhanced political consultations and practical cooperation on the joint handling of a number of security challenges in the region.

The proceedings of the meeting were chaired by NATO’s Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs and Security Policy, Ambassador Thrasyvoulos Stamatopoulos.