BRUSSELS - The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is joining the coalition to fight against militants in the Middle East.
NATO Sec.-Gen. Jens Stoltenberg says the military alliance is lending its support to the U.S.-led coalition against the group calling itself the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
The decision came as leaders of the military alliance are gathered in Brussels to discuss burden-sharing and terrorism as part of an effort to show U.S. President Donald Trump that the military alliance he once called "obsolete" is still relevant today.
Stoltenberg says joining the coalition will send a "strong political message" that NATO is serious about countering terrorism, which was once again thrust into the spotlight after the deadly attack on a concert arena in Manchester, England this week.
All 28 NATO allies, including Canada, are already part of the anti-ISIL coalition.
Stoltenberg says support from NATO will mean more flight time, more information-sharing and more air-to-air refuelling, but it will not mean the alliance will engage in combat operations.
