NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg (center), the president of the European Council, Charles Michel (left), and the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen (NATO website)

The heads of the EU and NATO signed earlier today their third joint declaration, which entails increased cooperation between the bloc and the coalition in several fields, including critical infrastructure protection, space, and foreign meddling.

European Council President Charles Michel stated to reporters following the signing ceremony that the new cooperation agreement will enable higher levels of cooperation between the parties.

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"With today’s declaration, we want to take our cooperation to the next level, to ensure peace and stability, intensify our cooperation into new areas, such as protecting critical infrastructure, space, the implications of climate change, and foreign information manipulation and interference," he said.

The agreement was signed by European Council President Charles Michel, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Brussels.

On his part, Stoltenberg said the new level of partnership between the European Union and NATO is the most significant one so far.

"We have just signed the third EU-NATO joint declaration, the strategic partnership between NATO and the EU. This is more important than ever," he told reporters.

The declaration, which was supposed to be concluded in 2021 and was postponed several times for undisclosed reasons, considers NATO the primary common defender of the EU's security.