NATO head urges Turkey, Austria to resolve dispute

NATO's Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg urged Austria and Turkey on Friday to resolve a diplomatic dispute that has led to some cooperation programs being blocked, Reuters reported.

Turkey, a NATO ally, has withdrawn from some alliance participation - mostly military training - saying the move is aimed only at Austria.

"It is a very unfortunate situation and it means some cooperation programs can't be launched," Stoltenberg told reporters during a visit to the Danish capital Copenhagen.

Austria, which is not a NATO member but cooperates with the alliance, led calls last year to halt Turkey's European Union accession talks. 

"It's a bilateral situation between Turkey and Austria and we strongly urge them to solve it, so that it won't have negative consequences for the cooperation," he said.