BRUSSELS - NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen on Thursday urged Libya's National Transitional Council (NTC) to secure massive stockpiles of weapons and stop the smuggling of munitions out of the country.

"It (NTC) must play a responsible role in the region. That includes preventing the spread of arms through North Africa. As (the United Nations) Security Council stressed, the National Transitional Council must do whatever it takes to bring the situation under control. And neighboring states must take action too," Rasmussen said at his monthly press conference.

The NATO chief said though the military alliance has terminated its operations in Libya on October 31, the arms embargo on Libya is still in place.

"According to the United Nations Security Council resolutions the arms embargo is still in place. And it is the responsibility of individual nations now to enforce the arms embargo, including Libya's neighbors," he said.

Rasmussen said the NTC can ask the international community or individual countries for support in dealing with the problem.

"NATO is also ready for help with the reform of the defense and security sectors if so requested...But we have not received a formal request yet," he said.