Minister of Defense Fatmir Besimi took part Friday at a meeting of NATO defense ministers with non-NATO ISAF and KFOR contributing nations, which was held at Alliance's headquarters in Brussels.

Minister Besimi at the meeting presented the reforms implemented by the Macedonian defense sector and the contribution of army troops in peacekeeping missions. He urged that Macedonia remained committed to the strategic goal of backing NATO-led operations and maintaining overall security.

At the sidelines of the event, DM Besimi held bilateral talks with his counterparts from Canada and Norway, who expressed their countries' open support for Macedonian accession to NATO. They also urged a mutually acceptable solution to the name dispute with Greece to be reached promptly. Hence, the number of NATO members openly voicing their stance ahead of the upcoming summit in Chicago is rising.