NATO continues to strengthen its eastern flank
As the Russian army carries on its aggression in Ukraine, in Brussels NATO defence ministers decided to strengthen the Alliance's long-term posture, particularly in the eastern flank, including Romania.
The grounds for the decision were summarised by the Alliance's secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, as follows: Russia's willingness to resort to force must not be underestimated, nor should one overlook the fact that the country has nuclear capabilities.
Still, as NATO's deputy secretary general Mircea Geoană explained, this is not an indication of an imminent conflict with the Russian Federation, but rather a deterrence move.
NATO's reset military positioning in the East will involve a substantial increase in the number of rapid response land forces with prepositioned equipment and supplies, more air power, strengthened integrated air and missile defence, carrier strike groups, submarines and significant numbers of combat ships. Cyber defence will also be enhanced.
According to Stoltenberg, "Allies are united when it comes to that NATO should not deploy forces on the ground or in the airspace of Ukraine," to make sure that Vladimir Putin's war doesn't spiral into a conflict between two nuclear blocs.
Nonetheless, NATO defence ministers decided to continue providing financial, humanitarian and military assistance to Kyiv, as they have done so far, which helped make the Ukrainian resistance possible. As for discouraging Moscow's possible plans to have the conflict escalate beyond Ukraine, NATO's battlegroup in Romania will be fully operational shortly.
With respect to the size or possible permanent status of the new battlegroups in the East, NATO's deputy secretary general Mircea Geoană said a final decision would be taken in a summit in June. Meanwhile, given that the entire security situation in Europe has changed, Allies were urged to invest at least 2% of GDP in defence. Romania, which has done so for several years now, has recently decided to increase the GDP share earmarked for defence to 2.5%.
In short, NATO does not anticipate a Russian attack on Allied territory, especially since 75% of Russia's forces are deployed in Ukraine, without notable results. But, secretary general Jens Stoltenberg reiterated, "NATO will not tolerate any attack on Allied sovereignty or territorial integrity." The NATO official also called on Russia's president Putin to stop the war immediately and to engage in diplomacy in good faith.
The huge disproportion between NATO and Russian forces favours the Allies, and this can be seen in Moscow as well, the participants in the extraordinary meeting of NATO defence ministers in Brussels agreed. (A.M.P.)
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