NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said here on Sunday that the NATO Heads of State and Government Summit is being held in a very important period.

De Hoop Scheffer told a press conference that Turkey had a very important role and that role would continue in the future.

However, he refrained from commenting on possible contributions of the Turkish government, saying he did not know what kind of a decision the Turkish government would make.

He also declined to comment on Turkey's possible role in democratization of the Middle East.

Asked if the European Union (EU) would undertake a complementary role in case NATO did not undertake the role of training Iraqi security units, de Hoop Scheffer said that he discussed the issue with EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana but the EU did not exactly know the answer of the question.

De Hoop Scheffer said that the Iraqi government was trying to coordinate efforts on its own but expressed belief that the Iraqi government should ask for assistance of other countries.

The NATO Heads of State and Government Summit will take place in Istanbul Monday and Tuesday.

During the two-day summit, the NATO members are due to discuss a wide range of issues concerning Iraq, Afghanistan, anti-terrorism and NATO reform and expansion.

Source: Xinhua