Det Udenrigspolitiske Nævn 2023-24
UPN Alm.del Bilag 325
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NATO DEFENCE
MINISTERS’ MEETING
13-14 June 2024
Policy Brief
128 SPE 24 E | Original: English | June 2024
This Policy Brief is presented for information only and does not
represent the official view of the Assembly.
 UPN, Alm.del - 2023-24 - Bilag 325: Policy Brief NATO MoD Meeting
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128 SPE 24 E
NATO DEFENCE MINISTERS’ MEETING, 13-14 JUNE 2024:
KEY TAKEAWAYS
NATO Ministers of Defence met in Brussels from 13-14 June. This was the
last meeting
at the ministerial level prior to the July Summit
of Heads of State and Government in
Washington, D.C. from 9-11 July. Meetings of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group, the
NATO-Ukraine Council in Defence Ministers’ Session and the Nuclear Planning Group in
Ministerial Session were also held.
Focus of the Meetings
•
Predictable and coordinated support for Ukraine, incl.
o
NATO coordination of security assistance and training
o
long-term financial commitment
•
Allied deterrence and defence
o
implementation of NATO’s new defence plans
o
a new Defence Industrial Pledge
o
NATO Nuclear Posture and Adaptation
•
Response to Russia’s hostile actions toward allies
Decisions
•
Defence ministers endorsed:
o
NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine
o
a NATO-Ukraine Innovation Cooperation Roadmap
o
further steps to continue to implement NATO’s new defence plans
o
response options against further hostile actions toward Allies by Russia
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128 SPE 24 E
I.
PREDICTABLE AND COORDINATED SUPPORT FOR UKRAINE
The NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine
•
•
Defence ministers agreed for NATO to lead the coordination of security
assistance and training for Ukraine.
NATO will oversee the
training of Ukrainian forces in Allied nations; plan and
coordinate donations of equipment; manage transfer and repair of equipment;
and
provide support to the long-term development
of Ukraine’s armed forces.
Key aims behind NATO assuming the lead include
increasing transparency and
accountability
as well as
reducing risks of gaps and delays
between
announcements and deliveries.
The NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (NSATU)
effort will be
launched at the NATO Summit in Washington, D.C. It will come
under the NATO
Command Structure
and draw on
NATO Common Funding.
A 3-Star General will lead a new NATO command
at an existing US facility in
Wiesbaden, Germany, and
logistical nodes in the Alliance’s Eastern part.
The
Commander will report directly to NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe
(SACEUR). Almost
700 Allied and partner personnel
are expected to be part of this
effort.
NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg made clear that NATO Security Assistance and
Training for Ukraine “do[es] not make NATO a party to the conflict, but they will enhance
our support to Ukraine to uphold its right to self-defence.”
•
•
•
•
Long-term financial commitment
•
Ministers discussed a long-term financial pledge for Ukraine,
aimed at sustaining
military support levels for Ukraine (Allies currently provide more than 99% of the military
aid to Ukraine).
The Secretary General has argued that
the level of support provided by Allies since
Russia’s renewed invasion should be maintained, namely an annual support of
EUR 40 billion per year for as long as it takes.
According to the Secretary General’s proposal,
Allies would contribute according to
the balance of their respective GDPs.
As the United States equals roughly 50 percent
of NATO Allies’ total GDP, it would provide half, with the rest divided among all other
Allies accordingly.
NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg expressed his confidence
that the long-term
financial pledge would be approved “[b]ecause a credible long-term commitment shows
Moscow that they cannot wait us out.”
Ahead of the meeting, the Secretary General met Hungary’s Prime Minister. The
Secretary General noted that “Hungary will not send the personnel to these activities
[under NATO Security and Assistance for Ukraine] and not contribute to the NATO
[financial] pledge”. However, he also noted that Hungary “will adhere to older NATO
obligations,” “continue to finance the NATO common budget according to the agreed
cost shares” and “not block any decision by other NATO Allies on taking on the lead of
the provision of training and security assistance and not block and a decision on a
financial pledge”.
•
•
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128 SPE 24 E
Further steps on Ukraine’s path to NATO membership
•
In addition to Allied pledges for immediate military assistance, NSATU and the NATO
financial pledge, the Secretary General noted that he expected the fourth deliverable for
the NATO Washington Summit “to ensure that we move Ukraine closer to membership”.
“That's part an issue of language, which is now negotiated”, he noted, “but also of
course, everything we do interoperability moving Ukraine, closer to NATO, when it
comes to integration will help them also to sooner, faster, quicker, become a NATO Ally.”
When asked, the Secretary General noted that he expects strong language on
membership coming out of the Summit: “It's not for me to go into the details on the exact
wording but
I expect that that language will be even clearer in our commitment that
Ukraine will become a member of the alliance.”
•
NATO-Ukraine Joint Analysis, Training and Education Centre (JATEC)
•
Ministers are also on the path to endorse the NATO-Ukraine Joint Analysis,
Training and Education Centre (JATEC) in Bydgoszcz, Poland,
as the first joint
institution between NATO and Ukraine. JATEC will allow the sharing of lessons learned
from Russia’s war and for Ukrainian forces to learn and train alongside Allied
counterparts.
NATO-Ukraine Innovation Cooperation Roadmap
•
Defence ministers endorsed
the first-ever
NATO-Ukraine Innovation Cooperation
Roadmap.
II.
ALLIED DETERRENCE AND DEFENCE
[Note: A few days after the meeting, NATO released
the latest figures for Allied defence
expenditures.
These show 23 Allies meeting the 2% target in 2024, up from three in 2014.]
Implementation of NATO’s new defence plans
•
Defence ministers discussed and agreed on further steps
to continue to
implement
NATO’s “most comprehensive defence plans since the end of the Cold War”,
in
the words of the NATO Secretary General.
Importantly,
NATO’s new regional defence plans
must lead to updated command and
control, refined delegated authorities and ensuring all required forces and capabilities
are ready for any contingency.
As NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg said, “Allies are offering forces to NATO’s
command at a scale not seen in decades.
Today we have 500,000 troops at high
readiness across all domains, significantly more than the goal that was set at the
2022 Madrid Summit.”
NATO has already doubled the number of battlegroups on the Eastern flank, and Allies
are exercising at a higher tempo and with more complexity. 2024’s Steadfast Defender
included 90,000 troops across Europe.
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128 SPE 24 E
Towards a new Defence Industrial Pledge
•
•
Ministers discussed
the framework for
a new Defence Industrial Pledge,
which Allies
are expected to agree to at the Washington Summit.
The new pledge would go a step further to
increase production rates, making
procurement more agile and help Allies standardise munitions and improve
interoperability.
A new Defence Industrial Pledge would also
signal the long-term investments
needed by industry to meet demand levels.
•
NATO Nuclear Posture and Adaptation
•
•
Ministers discussed the ongoing adaptation of the Alliance’s nuclear capabilities
at a meeting of the Nuclear Planning Group.
The Secretary General noted the recent announcement that
the Netherlands’s F-35
fighter jets were declared ‘ready’ to support NATO’s nuclear mission
and
mentioned
the United States’ ongoing modernisation of its nuclear weapons in
Europe.
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As NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg stated,
the current nuclear environment
surrounding Allies is evolving quickly and poses new challenges to Allies.
He
cited
several examples:
o
Russia’s dangerous use of nuclear rhetoric, announced deployment of nuclear
weapons to Belarus and its increase in nuclear exercises;
o
China’s robust nuclear forces modernisation effort, which is significantly increasing
the size of China’s strategic nuclear forces, which in turn will be able to reach NATO
territory; and
o
The existing North Korean nuclear programme and the efforts by Iran to develop a
nuclear military capability.
Considering this rapidly evolving and challenging nuclear environment, Stoltenberg
noted, “NATO’s nuclear mission remains the same: to preserve peace, prevent coercion,
and deter aggression.”
•
•
III.
•
RESPONSE TO RUSSIA’S HOSTILE ACTIONS TOWARD ALLIES
Russia’s increasing number of hostile actions
against Allies were also on the
meeting’s agenda. These include
an intensifying campaign of sabotage, acts of
violence, cyber-attacks and disinformation.
Defence Ministers agreed
to a set of response options, including:
o
Increased intelligence exchanges;
o
Enhanced protection of critical infrastructure, including undersea and cyber; and,
o
Further restrictions on Russian intelligence operatives.
The Secretary General noted that “Allies are taking decisive measures – making arrests
and launching legal proceedings.” He added that “[w]e will be calm and measured in
how we respond to Russian provocations. At the same time, we will call out Russia’s
actions and impose costs.”
For more information on NATO’s nuclear deterrence policy and forces, including its nuclear burden-sharing
arrangements, please refer to the Alliance’s information on the subject
here.
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128 SPE 24 E
•
“Russia’s campaign will not deter us from supporting Ukraine and we will continue to
protect our territories and populations against any kind of hostile actions,” said Secretary
General Stoltenberg.
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www.nato-pa.int
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