USA ‘unwavering’ in North Atlantic Treaty Organisation support – Pence

“The United States is and will always be your greatest ally”.

Leaders of the German Awami League and other European countries welcomed Sheikh Hasina when she reached the Munich Marriott Hotel in a motorcade.

“The promise to share the burden of our defence has gone unfulfilled for too many, for too long and it erodes the very foundation of our alliance”, he warned, stressing that “the time has come to do more”.

Pence’s goal in his remarks was to reassure US allies in Europe of the new administration’s continued commitment to regional security, his aides said before the speech.

His promised commitment North Atlantic Treaty Organisation was greeted by muted applause by European allies.

Pence described the “savagery unseen since the Middle Ages” of the Isis forces, while reiterating “the United States will fight tirelessly to crush these enemies”.

“If America’s allies offer Mattis and Trump only pledges of support that go unfulfilled, they will provoke a US response that may cause historic damage to security in Europe”.

NATO, or the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, is a military alliance of European and North American democracies created after World War II to strengthen global cooperation as a counter-balance to the rise of the Soviet Union.

Nor is it clear what Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who has yet to hold a press conference, really thinks of America’s commitment to European security.

“We will do everything we can in order to fulfil this commitment”, she said. “So we’ve learned to watch what the president does as opposed to what he says”. “The time has come to do more”, he said.

The address also sought to reassure worldwide partners who worry Mr Trump may pursue isolationist tendencies.

ISLAMABAD – A brutal attack on a beloved Sufi shrine that killed 88 people raised fears that the Islamic State group has become emboldened in Pakistan, aided by an army of homegrown militants benefiting from hideouts in neighboring Afghanistan, analysts and officials said Friday.

Pence is set to deliver a speech Saturday at the Munich Security Conference, an annual gathering of diplomats and security officials, and then meet with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

“I’m grateful to be among so many leaders in our democracies as we forge our path ahead”, Mattis said, adding, “This is how we build approaches to working together for a peaceful and prosperous future”.

The position will be reiterated by Pence, who will underline that the Minsk accord mediated by France and Germany is “the framework for peace” in Ukraine.

The Munich conference presents an opportunity for foreign leaders to gain clarity about Trump’s foreign policy goals.