Brussels – Upholding the Transatlantic Alliance’s commitments, ensuring fair burden-sharing, transforming resources into capabilities, and continuing support for Ukraine. These are the priorities set out in Ankara (Turkey) by the NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte, during the press conference ahead of the Atlantic Alliance summit beginning tomorrow (7 July). Over two days, the Allied nations will discuss not only increasing military spending but also how they intend to meet the target of 5 per cent of GDP by 2035, a commitment to which Italy is also a signatory.
“Just one year on, we are already seeing extraordinary progress,” said Rutte, who now expects “clear, concrete, and credible plans to achieve the 5 per cent target” from governments. On this point, the Secretary-General commended the European Allies and Canada, as they are currently “already investing around 4 per cent of their GDP in defence and security,” an increase of almost 20 per cent in defence spending compared with last year, amounting to approximately $258 billion. For this reason, according to the Secretary-General, they are “on track to bring their defence spending in line with that of the United States.” In addition to spending, the Allies’ efforts “to strengthen our deterrence and defence, including along the entire eastern flank in the Baltic region and the Arctic” and in Ukraine were recognised. This, he noted, “demonstrates a real shift in mindset.”
The aim now is to “translate our economic strength into military capabilities.” In short, this means ensuring greater innovation, overcoming the fragmentation of national defence industries, and streamlining bureaucracy. For this reason, NATO will launch the NATO Summit Defence Industry Forum tomorrow, a platform where Allies will demonstrate how they are “working together in the sector.” This “will contribute to the growth of our economies, spread innovation, and support hundreds of thousands of jobs on both sides of the Atlantic,” Rutte emphasised.
On the issue of Ukraine, Rutte reiterated that NATO Allies and partners must continue to ensure that the country receives what it needs, adding a warning: all Allies must play their part, “because Ukraine’s security is closely linked to our own.” Therefore, “we will ensure that the situation is brought back into balance for the better,” with a view to “sharing responsibility for our common security fairly.” Finally, “we will continue to provide strong support to Ukraine, reminding President Putin that we remain steadfast in our commitment,” he concluded.
English version by the Translation Service of Withub
