NATO needs new defense protecting its members from new threats such as terrorism, missile attacks, and cyber attacks, declared its Secretary-General, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, in Sofia.

Rasmussen met Thursday with the Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov in Sofia. After the meeting, he revealed the main topic of the talks was the new strategic concept of the pact, which is to be adopted in Lisbon in November 2010.

“The new strategy will confirm that the main task of NATO is to protect the territories and population of the member states. At the same time, it is going to indicate the roads for the transformation of the Alliance so that it is prepared to protect itself from the new threats,” explained the NATO Secretary-General.

In this respect, Rasmussen underscored the importance of the US plan for deploying a missile defense system in Europe which should be capable of defending all member states of the pact from missile attacks.

The NATO chief expressed his hope that during the Lisbon Summit in November, the member states will adopt the American initiative as a NATO plan. He pointed out that the US-proposed missile shield will cost less than EUR 200 M, and will provide for the efficient defense of all 28 member states.

According to the plan of the Obama Administration for a US missile defense in Europe, components of the shield will be based on sea and on the territory of Bulgaria and Romania. It replaced the original plan put forth by the Bush Administration providing for a missile shield system based in Poland and the Czech Republic.

During his visit to Sofia, the NATO Secretary-General said he hoped that the Alliance will be able to cooperate with Russia for the establishment of the missile defense.

“This initiative has two aspects – military and political. The Alliance can receive a lot from Russia in the context of the setting up of the missile defense in military terms. In political terms, this potential cooperation will eliminate Russia’s fears that this system is directed again it,” Rasmussen explained while also emphasizing that the idea for cooperation had already been discussed within the NATO-Russia Council, but that further talks were coming down the road.

He further declared that the recent uranium enrichment deal reach by the leaders of Brasil, Iran, and Turkey, which according to some analysts is supposed to assuage West’s fear over the Iranian nuclear program, did not alter the plans of the North Atlantic Alliance to establish a missle shield in Europe. According to the official doctrine of the proposed US missile defense in Europe, the system is supposed to protect the European NATO members from missile attacks from Iran and the Middle East.

Anders Fogh Rasmussen evaluated highly the new approach of the US Presidency in the face of Barack Obama to the missile defense in Europe, and praised the intention to transform the plans from a purely American into a NATO initiative.

“From the very beginning we have declared that we will participate in the European missile defense if it is an initiative of NATO. I don’t imagine how we can stay out of a system encompassing all of Europe,” Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov declared in reply to the statements made by Rasmussen.

Borisov pointed out that the new NATO strategy will focus on defending not just the armed forces but all the entire population of the member states of the Pact.

“This missile shield system aims to attract Russia to join in. This is exactly how NATO wants to demonstrate that it is an organization defending the people in all countries,” the Bulgarian PM stressed adding that Bulgaria had declared support for all Balkan countries wishing to join the Alliance.

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