Strengthening NATO’s defence capabilities, especially of the rapid-force variety, will emerge as the summit’s most urgent task as the war in Ukraine grinds on. Doing so will not be easy since most of the NATO members’ defence spending, including Canada’s, is below the alliance’s 2 per cent of GDP target.
In an interview earlier this week, Kusti Salm, permanent secretary at the Estonia defence ministry, said that a Russian military helicopter recently entered Estonian airspace. Estonia’s military believed the incursion was no accident. “This is the picture of the threat,” he said. “It has never been as serious as it is now.”
Mr. Stoltenberg has vowed to strengthen NATO’s eastern flank deterrence and defence capabilities, but has not given operational details; they might emerge in Madrid. Since 2017, the three Baltic states have each hosted a NATO battalion of about 1,000 soldiers . Recently, Germany proposed devoting a “robust combat brigade” to Lithuania. But most of its soldiers would be based in Germany, with the ability to move into Lithuania quickly.
The issues seem surmountable, though Turkey has hinted it could hold up Sweden’s and Finland’s entry for a year. On June 20, NATO hosted a meeting with representatives of the three countries to push for a breakthrough before the summit. But hopes are fading that Turkey will sign off in Madrid. “Turkey has legitimate security concerns over terrorism that we need to address,” Mr. Stoltenberg said.
Yugo, Serbia, Afghanistan, Libya, Syria. Decades of war and you're acting like Russia invented it in February.
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