Blinken says US wants to 'revitalize' NATO

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says the United States plans to "revitalize" NATO and has a "steadfast commitment" to the military alliance.

Speaking during his first visit to the NATO headquarters in Brussels on Tuesday and as he met NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, Blinken told reporters that the alliance was at a "pivotal moment" in history.

"I've come here to express the United States' steadfast commitment (to NATO)," Blinken said.

"The last thing we can afford to do is take this alliance for granted," Blinken said. "The United States wants to rebuild our partnerships, first and foremost with our NATO allies. We want to revitalize the alliance."

Blinken claimed that NATO member states were facing numerous military threats from global powers. He raised the alarm about alleged military threats from China and Russia against the West, insisting that those threats required NATO member states to come together.

"There will be no European defense without NATO and there will be no efficient and relevant NATO without Europeans," Blinken said.

In regard to the Nord Stream 2 pipeline that aims to transfer natural gas from Russia to northwestern Europe, Blinken said US President Joe Biden opposed the project and believed that it was contrary to the European Union (EU)'s interests.

"President Biden has been very clear, he believes the pipeline is a bad idea, bad for Europe, bad for the United States. Ultimately it is in contradiction to the EU's own security goals," Blinken said.

The US is opposed to the transfer of Russian gas to Europe because it fears that American businesses would lose a continent-wide market.

Blinken claimed the pipeline project "has the potential to undermine the interests of Ukraine, Poland, and a number of close partners and allies."

He warned the alliance member states that a US law required Washington to impose sanctions on the companies participating in the Nord Stream 2 project.

He claimed, however, that NATO would work with Russia "when it advances... our interest."

Blinken said he would raise the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline issue with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas in their upcoming meeting.

'Ankara remains an ally'

In his speech, Blinken urged Turkey to re-embrace the US-led NATO.

In 2019, Turkey launched an offensive on US-backed rebels in Syria, prompting French President Emmanuel Macron to assert that NATO was "experiencing brain death."

Blinken said that despite the differences with Ankara, the United States and NATO had a strong interest in keeping the Turkish state anchored in the alliance.

"It's no secret that we have differences with Turkey, including over the S-400s and including certain actions that they're taking, including in the Eastern Mediterranean. It's also no secret that Turkey is a long-standing and valued ally, and one that I believe we have a strong interest in keeping anchored to NATO," Blinken said, adding that it was also in Ankara's interest to remain an alliance member.

The US is also opposed to Turkey's purchase of Russian S-400 missile defense systems.

No plans of withdrawal from Afghanistan

Asked about the US deal with the Taliban and a military withdrawal from Afghanistan, Blinken said the matter was under review but implied that no such withdrawal would take place any time soon.

"We went in together, we have adjusted together, and when the time is right, we will leave together," Blinken told reporters, referring to the persisting US-led occupation of Afghanistan.

"We have a review underway in the United States. I'm here today in part to share some of our initial thinking with our NATO allies," Blinken said.

The US reached a deal with the Afghan Taliban in February last year on the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan in exchange for the Taliban's halting of their attacks on foreign forces. Under the so-called Doha accord, the former US administration promised to bring the number of US forces in Afghanistan to zero by May 2021.

However, Biden said last week that it would be "tough" for Washington to meet the looming deadline, triggering Taliban's outrage.

Meanwhile, Blinken and NATO foreign ministers are set to discuss each country's share of military presence in Afghanistan over the next two days at the NATO headquarters in Brussels.

They will be meeting for the first time in person in a year. Previous meeting had been held online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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