Foreign ministers from NATO countries are meeting on Thursday in Brussels to mark the 75th anniversary of their alliance, agreeing to begin planning for a stronger co-ordination of military aid to Ukraine, according to Reuters.
The ministers will mark the second day of their meeting in Brussels by commemorating the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty in Washington on 4 April, 1949, which established a transatlantic political and military alliance. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stressed the importance of close ties between Europe and North America.
As we face a more dangerous world, the bond between Europe and North America has never been more important.
NATO was founded by 12 members from North America and Europe in response to growing concerns that the Soviet Union posed a military threat to European democracies. The alliance is based on the concept of collective defence and the idea that an attack on one member is considered an attack on them all, ensuring US military protection for Western Europe.
Today, NATO has 32 members and is once again assuming a central role in world affairs after the war in Ukraine has prompted European governments to consider Russia as a threat to their security. Two new NATO members, Finland and Sweden, joined in response to the outbreak of war in Ukraine in February 2022.
“We will continue to strengthen our alliance. And we will continue to work with our partners across the globe for peace and security.”
Ministers agreed to begin planning for a strengthened NATO leadership in co-ordinating security assistance and training for Ukraine on Wednesday. Under Stoltenberg’s proposal, the alliance would take over the work done by a special US-led coalition known as the Ramstein group, partly to protect against any reduction in US support if Donald Trump returns to the White House.
According to diplomats, Stoltenberg also proposed creating a fund of 100 billion euros (about $108 billion) to support the Ukrainian army within five years.
The ministers are also due to meet Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba on Thursday. He stated that he would insist that they should provide more Patriot air defence systems to shield from Russian ballistic missiles. He stressed that NATO countries could provide more if they had the political will to do so.
Partners did provide us with their different [air defence] systems. We appreciate that, but it’s just simply insufficient, given the scale of the war.
