Italy’s Defence Minister Guido Crosetto, speaking at the University of Padua on Friday, asserted that the NATO alliance had lost its relevance in a world no longer dominated by Europe and the United States, according to Euractiv.
For two years I have been explaining to NATO that NATO no longer has any reason to exist.
The controversial remarks come days before NATO leaders gather in The Hague, where they are expected to commit to significantly increased defence spending. This stance contrasts sharply with many European leaders who argue the alliance regained purpose since the outbreak of war in Ukraine in 2022.
Crosetto contended that fundamental changes in global power structures have undermined NATO’s original purpose.
The centre of the world is no longer the US and the EU. […] If NATO was born to guarantee peace and mutual defence, then it must either become an organisation that undertakes this role at a global level – engaging with the Global South, from Brazil to India – or else we will fail to achieve the goal we all share.
The minister’s position creates tension within Italy’s government, as Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is expected to support enhanced military spending commitments at next week’s summit. Crosetto’s critique echoes French President Emmanuel Macron’s 2019 description of NATO’s “brain death,” though that assessment preceded the alliance’s renewed unity over Ukraine.
Crosetto concluded that without embracing truly global engagement and establishing universally applicable rules, NATO risks strategic irrelevance in an increasingly multipolar world.
