NATO chief urges more self-sufficiency in medical stocks

NATO countries need to learn lessons from the coronavirus crisis by looking at boosting national stocks of medical equipment to avoid over-reliance on outside suppliers, the alliance's chief said Tuesday.

"We have to look into the issues of the supply of medical equipment and protective suits, medicines and all that kind of stuff. And also ask questions like: are we too dependent on production coming from outside?" Jens Stoltenberg said in a videolink media conference.

"National resilience in NATO's responsibility," he said.

"All of these issues -- resilience, national resilience including ensuring we have the necessary medical equipment -- will be part of the lesson-learning process after this crisis."