By Zamira Rahim, Melissa Macaya and Ed Upright, CNN
From CNN's Kyle Blaine
The first session of the NATO summit is officially underway. The White House confirmed that US President Joe Biden met earlier today with the leaders of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.
The meetings with the Baltic leaders were on Biden's schedule but were not open to press coverage.
From CNN's Betsy Klein in Brussels
All 30 NATO world leaders wore face masks as they entered a hall for the family photo, practicing social distancing. They were told via overhead to remove their masks and look at the cameras for a full 15 seconds.
After the photo was taken the group was told to look at a futuristic, columnar screen in the center of the room, which lit up with a video touting the alliance. The clip was accompanied by soaring music.
“Cool,” Biden appeared to mouth at the video’s conclusion.
The leaders were then told to put their masks back on before the summit began.
Watch here:
World leaders are gathering today in Brussels, Belgium, for the 2021 summit of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
Here are some key things to know about the group:
Its purpose: The organization’s charter states that the signing parties will “seek to promote stability and well-being in the North Atlantic area,” and will “unite their efforts for collective defense and for the preservation of peace and security.”
When it started: NATO was established April 4, 1949 when 12 nations signed the North Atlantic Treaty in a ceremony in Washington, DC.
NATO's leader: The current secretary general is Jens Stoltenberg, former prime minister of Norway. He released the organization's latest annual report on March 16.
Member countries:
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed US President Joe Biden to Brussels and thanked him for his "rock solid commitment to our Alliance."
"I know we can count on America & America can count on #NATO2030," Stoltenberg tweeted Monday.
The key summit kicked off on Monday with a family photo of the leaders in attendance.
NATO's leaders have gathered in Brussels, Belgium, for a "family photo," a picture taken of the group at each landmark summit.
The photo session will be followed by the day's main agenda, with the global leaders set to discuss Russia and China, among other matters.
The summit is Biden's first alliance summit as US president. It follows his appearance at the G7 summit over the weekend in England.
Many of Biden's fellow leaders at the NATO summit have commented on the US' global role and recommitment to multilateralism under the new president.
Read more about today's meeting here.
Watch the historic moment unfold:
From CNN’s Vasco Cotovio in London
Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi says Monday’s NATO summit is part of the ongoing process of reaffirmation of the US’s role within the alliance, after four years of “undecided” membership under former President Donald Trump.
“This summit is the continuation of the G7 encounter yesterday,” Draghi told journalists when he arrived at the summit in Brussels.
“It’s part of the reaffirmation and rebuilding process of the fundamental alliance for the United States, which was, how to put it, ‘undecided’ during the previous administration.”
“Think that President Biden’s first visit is to Europe, and try to remember where President Trump’s first visit was to,” Draghi also said.
President Trump’s first trip abroad as US President was to Saudi Arabia.
“So we are here to reaffirm this alliance but also to reaffirm the importance of the European Union within it,” Draghi added.
“A stronger European Union means a stronger NATO," he said.
From CNN's Kevin Liptak in Brussels
US President Joe Biden has arrived for his first in-person North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit after taking office, vowing to reaffirm the United States' commitment to a military alliance his predecessor in the White House viewed with disdain.
The summit comes as Biden looks to reassert American leadership on the world stage and strengthen global partnerships during his first international trip as President. It comes on the heels of several meetings with US allies and the annual Group of Seven (G7) summit in Cornwall, England.
Biden said Sunday he would reiterate the US's commitment to NATO's collective defense clause and communicate to allies that it believes Article 5 is a "sacred obligation."
Here's what to expect of today's meetings:
From CNN’s Saskya Vandoorne in Brussels
French President Emmanuel Macron and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had a “long” meeting on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Brussels on Monday.
“Ahead of the NATO summit, I had a long one-on-one exchange with President Erdogan,” Macron tweeted on Monday.
“In order to move forward with clarity, respect and exigency.”
According to the French Presidency, the meeting between the two lasted a total of 45 minutes, longer than expected, because the two men were keen to discuss all matters in depth, including strategic clarification among allies on the values, principles and rules within NATO, as well as the situation in Libya and Syria.
Macron also used the opportunity to clarify his and France’s stance on Islam.
“The meeting was an opportunity for the President to reiterate that France respected Islam and Muslims, that French secularism respected all religions,” a spokesperson for the French Presidency said.
“These are the values of the Republic. Macron highlighted that these values should be respected and should not be instrumentalized.”
US President Joe Biden is also set to meet with Erdogan at today's summit.
See the French president's tweet:
From CNN's Betsy Klein in Brussels
US President Joe Biden met with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Brussels after arriving for his first in-person summit of the alliance after taking office.
"I want to make it clear, NATO is critically important for US interests in and of itself. If there weren't one, we would have to invent one. It allows America to conduct its business around the world in a way that never would have occurred were it not for NATO," Biden told reporters, noting the importance of Article Five as a “sacred obligation.”
“I just want all of Europe to know that the United States is there, the United States is there,” Biden said.
The US President cited challenges facing the group of 30 nations, including that Russia is “not acting in a way that is consistent with what we had hoped,” and China, citing agreement at last week’s Group of Seven Summit.
Stoltenberg, echoing other world leaders at the G7 summit, said NATO “will open a new chapter in our transatlantic relationship with the meeting today to discuss a wide range of issues, including Russia.”
He continued, “I think that allied leaders look forward to consulting with you ahead of the meeting with President Putin. We will address China, and we have seen a convergence of views among allies,” outlining China’s “coercive behavior” as something NATO needs to respond to as a group.
Biden also thanked Stoltenberg for his “incredible leadership.”
“Quite frankly, we have competent people coming, but I wish you were not leaving,” he said, praising Stoltenberg’s ability to pull people together.
More on today's summit: The NATO summit comes as Biden looks to reassert American leadership on the world stage and strengthen global partnerships during his first international trip as President. It also comes on the heels of several meetings with US allies and the annual Group of Seven (G7) summit in Cornwall, England.
Biden said Sunday he would reiterate the US's commitment to NATO's collective defense clause and communicate to allies that the US believes Article 5 is a "sacred obligation."
During Monday's summit, NATO leaders are expected to discuss how to manage future threats and "ensure effective burden sharing," according to White House press secretary Jen Psaki.
Read more about today's meeting here.
CNN's Kevin Liptak contributed reporting to this post.
