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NATO says record number of allies hit defence target

Staff members work at the NATO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, March 24, 2022. (Xinhua/Zheng Huansong/IANS)

Biden, Harris and Blinken had took strong exception to Trump’s remark. Republican Nikki Haley had also took exception to the Trump’s statement…reports Asian Lite News

Outgoing NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has said that 18 of NATO’s 31 member alliance are expected to spend at least 2 per cent of their GDP on defence this year.

“That is another record number and a six-fold increase from 2014 when only three allies met their target,” Stoltenberg said on Wednesday ahead of a meeting between the alliance’s defense ministers in Brussels to be followed by a Security Alliance meeting in Munich in Germany.

US Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken are attending both of the NATOS meeting to assuage the feelings of members seriously concerned over US role since 2024 frontrunner in GOP primaries former US President Donald Trump brought up renewed scrutiny to the issue of defense spending among NATO members last weekend.

Trump reportedly said at a campaign rally in the home state of Nikki Halley, his opponent, in South Carolina, that he would encourage Russia to do “whatever the hell they want” to any NATO member country that doesn’t meet spending guidelines on defence.

Biden, Harris and Blinken had took strong exception to Trump’s remark. Republican Nikki Haley had also took exception to the Trump’s statement.

NATO Secretary General’s statements on member countries spending on defence assumed significance in that context as Trump’s statement effectively undercut the collective defence clause at the heart of the treaty.

Stoltenberg said on Monday that such comments put European and American soldiers at an increased risk.

“Any suggestion that allies will not defend each other undermines all of our security, including that of the US, and puts American and European soldiers at increased risk,” Stoltenberg said, according to CNN.

The NATO chief acknowledged on Wednesday that criticism of members not spending enough was “a valid point … and a message that has been conveyed by successive US administrations, that European Allies and Canada have to spend more, because we haven’t seen fair burden sharing in the alliance.”

To achieve an equitable share to take the burden, ten years ago NATO members pledged to increase their defence spending to 2 per cent of GDP for each country. Among the countries to hit the target recently is Germany.

The German Defense Ministry said on Wednesday that its 2024 budget will see its defense spending meet the 2 per cent threshold for the first time since the early 1990s.

As a whole, NATO’s European allies are expected to spend 2 per cent of their combined GDP on defense for the first time this year.

ALSO READ-NATO chief warns against dividing US and Europe  

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NATO chief warns against dividing US and Europe  

France has traditionally seen itself as a counterweight to U.S. influence in NATO. It does not participate in NATO’s nuclear planning group…reports Asian Lite News

The head of NATO warned member countries on Thursday against allowing a wedge to be driven between the United States and Europe, as concern grows about Washington’s commitment to its allies should Donald Trump return to office.

Faced with a war in Ukraine that is draining military and financial resources, and with a U.S. package of support held up by infighting in Congress, European leaders and senior officials have warned that Europe must invest more in its armies and new technologies and ramp up weapons production.

“I welcome that the European allies are investing more in defense, and NATO has called for that for many, many years,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters at the alliance’s Brussels headquarters, where he was chairing a meeting of the organization’s defense ministers.

“But that’s not an alternative to NATO. That is actually a way to strength NATO. And we should not pursue any path that indicates that we are trying to divide Europe from North America,” he said.

Talk has even surfaced in recent weeks about Europe developing a nuclear umbrella. France and the United Kingdom – a staunch U.S. ally that sees NATO as the world’s key security organization – are Europe’s only nuclear powers.

France has traditionally seen itself as a counterweight to U.S. influence in NATO. It does not participate in NATO’s nuclear planning group.

“NATO has a nuclear deterrent, and this has worked for decades,” Stoltenberg said. “We should not do anything to undermine that. That will only create more uncertainty and more room for miscalculation and misunderstanding.”

President Emmanuel Macron insists that France must maintain its independence when it comes to the possible use of nuclear weapons. He said in December, though, that France has a “very special responsibility” as a nuclear power in Europe and “stands by” its allies and European partners.

Talk of a European nuclear umbrella has come from, among others, German members of the European Parliament. But Chancellor OIaf Scholz and other top security policy officials believe there is no alternative to NATO’s nuclear umbrella.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius dismissed the debate about European nuclear weapons, saying that it’s a “complex discussion” that shouldn’t be embarked on because of remarks from an aspiring candidate who’s in election campaign mode.

On Saturday, former President Trump, the front-runner for the Republican Party’s nomination this year, said he once warned that he would allow Russia to do whatever it wants to NATO members that are “delinquent” in devoting 2% of GDP to defense.

ALSO READ-Putin Plans to Double Troops Along NATO Border Post-Ukraine

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Putin Plans to Double Troops Along NATO Border Post-Ukraine

The intelligence agency said that Russia could double the 19,000 troops positioned near Estonia…reports Asian Lite News

Estonia Foreign Intelligence Service on Tuesday said that Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to double his military deployment along the NATO border with the Baltic states and Finland as part of Moscow’s potential assault on a long term basis after Ukraine is over, media reports said.

The intelligence agency said that Putin still harbors an appetite for conflict and represents an unpredictable threat nearly two years after the invasion of Ukraine.

Estonia gained its independence from the former Soviet Union in 1991. It became a NATO member in 2004.

The intelligence agency said that Russia could double the 19,000 troops positioned near Estonia.

“Russia’s troop presence near Finland, with whom it shares an 830-mile border, has so far been fairly small,” the intelligence report said.

The report said that this scenario is going to change now because Finland recently became a NATO member.

The report said that Russia’s new military formation will be built around at least two or three maneuver units with around a dozen fire support and combat support units.

Western officials said Putin’s veiled threats to attack NATO countries could turn out to be real. Under NATO’s Article 5, an attack on one NATO member is deemed an attack on all.

Estonia Foreign Spying Director General Kaupo Rosin said that Russia has chosen a path with long-term confrontation.

“Russia is highly unlikely to attack a NATO country in the short term,” Rosin has said.

He said that the Russians in their own thinking are calculating that military conflict with NATO is possible in the next decade.

“Russians are planning to increase the military force along the Baltic states’ border but also the Finnish border. We will highly likely see an increase of manpower, about doubling perhaps. We will see an increase in armed personnel carriers, tanks, and artillery systems over the coming years,” he said.

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Trump’s approach to NATO not sensible, says Cameron

Speaking at a rally, Trump recalled allegedly saying, “I would encourage [Russia] to do whatever the hell they want,” to those behind on their spending commitments…reports Asian Lite News

Donald Trump’s recent rant about encouraging Russia to invade Nato states was “not a sensible approach,” according to Lord David Cameron.

The foreign secretary was responding to headline-grabbing comments made by the former – and possibly future – US president over the weekend about the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato).

Speaking to reporters during a trip to Scotland on Monday, the foreign secretary said: “I am a very strong supporter of Nato. “It is what helps to keep us safe and that is so essential in this world where we have seen Putin’s terrible illegal invasion of Ukraine.

“And actually Nato this year has got stronger with Sweden and Finland joining. “Of course we want all countries like us to spend 2% [of GDP] but I think what was said was not a sensible approach.”

According to Nato’s 2023 estimates, only just over a third of a members actually manage to spend 2% of their GDP on defence last year. Trump, the favourite to be the Republican nominee for the upcoming presidential elections, claimed he once told a European Nato leader he would not “protect” their country if it was not spending 2% of its GDP on defence.

Speaking at a rally, Trump recalled allegedly saying, “I would encourage [Russia] to do whatever the hell they want,” to those behind on their spending commitments.

Russian president Vladimir Putin is known to oppose Nato and is desperate to stop Ukraine joining the alliance. Unsurprisingly, Trump’s comments sparked a strong response from both sides of the Atlantic.

The UK’s security minister Tom Tugendhat told LBC on Monday that the US has made its commitments to Nato clear over “many, many years” after deploying millions of troops through the alliance. But, he added: “We need to make absolutely certain that all Nato members are [meeting the target] because the reality is, I’m afraid, that Putin’s war against Ukraine could spread if we are not successful and we need to make sure that we’re all defended.”

Although Ukraine is not in Nato, the member states have been a crucial source of support for the country amid Putin’s invasion. Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg said that the 31 member states are still committed to Article 5, its mutual defence cause where each country has to defend any member who comes under attack.

He said: “Nato remains ready and able to defend all allies. Any attack on Nato will be met with a united and forceful response. Any suggestion that allies will not defend each other undermines all of our security, including that of the US, and puts American and European soldiers at increased risk.”

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Stoltenberg Warns Trump’s NATO Critique Endangers Global Security

The former President’s comments drew strong backlash, with Stoltenberg saying in a statement that Trump’s attack could endanger both civilians and troops…reports Asian Lite News

Donald Trump has drawn the ire of the NATO countries with its Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg alleging that the former US President is undermining the future of the organisation with his recent campaign rally statement to a member country — “you don’t pay, we don’t protect you”.

Stoltenberg issued a warning to the leaders around the world after Trump stirred fears about the future of NATO at a campaign stop on Saturday. Trump was critical of certain countries in NATO which reportedly did not meet the goals for which the organisation was set up, media reports said.

He told a South Carolina rally that countries in the alliance were expected to spend at least 2 per cent of their GDP on defence. Trump specifically recalled a conversation he claims to have had with the President of a country when he was in office, saying, “One of the Presidents of a big country stood up and said, ‘Well sir, if we don’t pay and we’re attacked by Russia, will you protect us?’”

“You didn’t pay? You’re delinquent,” Trump had asked.

He said, “Yes, let’s say that happened.”

“No, I would not protect you,” Trump said, adding: “In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want.”

The former President’s comments drew strong backlash, with Stoltenberg saying in a statement that Trump’s attack could endanger both civilians and troops.

“Any suggestion that allies will not defend each other undermines all of our security, including that of the US, and puts American and European soldiers at increased risk,” Stoltenberg said in the statement, adding, “I expect that regardless of who wins the presidential election, the US will remain a strong and committed NATO ally.”

NATO’s charter requires members to come to the aid of others if they are attacked.

Trump’s latest comments also drew criticism from within America’s borders.

President Joe Biden in a statement released by his reelection campaign said: “If my opponent, Donald Trump, is able to regain power, he is making it clear as day that he will abandon our NATO allies if Russia attacks them and allow Russia to ‘do whatever the hell they want’ with them.”

Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, who is running against Trump for the 2024 GOP nomination, called NATO “a success story for the last 75 years”.

“Now, we do want NATO allies to pull their weight. But there are ways you can do that without sitting there and telling Russia, have your way with these countries,” Haley told CBS.

ALSO READ-NATO chief calls on Europe to ramp up arms production

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NATO kicks off largest military exercise in decades

The exercise is designed to simulate the 31-nation alliance’s response to an attack from a rival like Russia…reports Asian Lite News

NATO on Wednesday began its biggest military exercise since the Cold War with a US warship leaving the United States for transit across the Atlantic to alliance territory in Europe.

The Western military alliance has said some 90,000 troops will take part in the months-long Steadfast Defender 24 exercise designed to test its defenses in the face of Russia’s war on Ukraine.

“The alliance will demonstrate its ability to reinforce the Euro-Atlantic area via trans-Atlantic movement of forces from North America,” said General Christopher Cavoli, NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe.

“Steadfast Defender 2024 will be a clear demonstration of our unity, strength, and determination to protect each other, our values and the rules-based international order.”

The exercise is designed to simulate the 31-nation alliance’s response to an attack from a rival like Russia.

It will be composed of a series of smaller individual drills and will span from North America to NATO’s eastern flank, close to the Russian border.

Some 50 naval vessels, 80 aircraft and over 1,100 combat vehicles will take part.

The exercise — the biggest since the 1988 Reforger drill during the Cold War — comes as NATO has overhauled its defenses since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

The alliance has dispatched thousands of troops to its eastern flank and drawn up its most extensive plans since the collapse of the Soviet Union to protect itself from a Russian attack.

NATO did not mention Russia by name in its announcement. But its top strategic document identifies Russia as the most significant and direct threat to NATO members’ security.

The exercise comes at an important moment after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine started the deadliest war on European soil in more than 70 years.

ALSO READ-Turkey Gives Nod to Sweden’s NATO Membership

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Turkey Gives Nod to Sweden’s NATO Membership

Ankara : Turkish Parliament ratifies motion on launching cross-border operations in Iraq, Syria.(Xinhua/IANS)

The vote was the second step of Turkey’s ratification process after the parliament’s Foreign Affairs Commission approved the bid last month….reports Asian Lite News

The Turkish Parliament on Tuesday voted to approve Sweden’s NATO membership bid, bringing the Nordic country one step closer to joining the military alliance after months of delays, CNN reported.

Out of the 346 MPs who voted, 287 were in favour of Sweden’s accession and 55 voted to reject it. Four others abstained from voting.

The vote was the second step of Turkey’s ratification process after the parliament’s Foreign Affairs Commission approved the bid last month.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan can now sign the protocol into law.

Even after a significant hurdle has been cleared for the Nordic country’s accession into the military alliance, Hungary remains the only member state that has not yet ratified Sweden’s accession, CNN reported.

However, on Tuesday, Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban said he had invited his Swedish counterpart, Ulf Kristersson, to visit Hungary to negotiate the terms of Sweden’s accession.

Notably, Sweden and Finland applied for NATO membership in May 2022, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine earlier that year. Finland joined NATO in April 2023, doubling the alliance’s border with Russia, but Sweden has faced numerous delays in its path to accession.

Erdogan initially objected to Sweden’s membership bid, accusing Swedish officials of being “too lenient” on militant groups, including the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). Since applying, Sweden has tightened its anti-terror legislation and agreed to work more closely with Turkey on security concerns, as reported by CNN.

Meanwhile, Erdogan’s approval of Sweden’s accession bid also rides on a commitment by the United States, with the Turkish president signalling that he won’t sign the protocol into law unless the US approves the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey.

US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair Ben Cardin said on Tuesday that Congress, however, is waiting to see the accession documents completed before moving forward on the matter. (ANI)

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Turkish parliament ratifies Sweden’s bid to join NATO

Staff members work at the NATO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, March 24, 2022. (Xinhua/Zheng Huansong/IANS)

Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban said he had invited his Swedish counterpart, Ulf Kristersson, to visit Hungary to negotiate the terms of Sweden’s accession…reports Asian Lite News

The Turkish Parliament on Tuesday voted to approve Sweden’s NATO membership bid, bringing the Nordic country one step closer to joining the military alliance after months of delays, CNN reported.

Out of the 346 MPs who voted, 287 were in favour of Sweden’s accession and 55 voted to reject it. Four others abstained from voting.

The vote was the second step of Turkey’s ratification process after the parliament’s Foreign Affairs Commission approved the bid last month.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan can now sign the protocol into law.

Even after a significant hurdle has been cleared for the Nordic country’s accession into the military alliance, Hungary remains the only member state that has not yet ratified Sweden’s accession, CNN reported.

However, on Tuesday, Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban said he had invited his Swedish counterpart, Ulf Kristersson, to visit Hungary to negotiate the terms of Sweden’s accession.

Notably, Sweden and Finland applied for NATO membership in May 2022, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine earlier that year. Finland joined NATO in April 2023, doubling the alliance’s border with Russia, but Sweden has faced numerous delays in its path to accession.

Erdogan initially objected to Sweden’s membership bid, accusing Swedish officials of being “too lenient” on militant groups, including the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). Since applying, Sweden has tightened its anti-terror legislation and agreed to work more closely with Turkey on security concerns, as reported by CNN.

Meanwhile, Erdogan’s approval of Sweden’s accession bid also rides on a commitment by the United States, with the Turkish president signalling that he won’t sign the protocol into law unless the US approves the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey.

US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair Ben Cardin said on Tuesday that Congress, however, is waiting to see the accession documents completed before moving forward on the matter. (ANI)

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NATO Gears Up for Largest Exercise in Decades with 90,000 Forces

The exercise, dubbed “Exercise Steadfast Defender 2024,” is scheduled to commence next week and will extend through May…reports Asian Lite News

The NATO is set to hold its largest exercise in decades, with nearly 90,000 forces slated to participate, NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe Christopher Cavoli said.

The exercise, dubbed “Exercise Steadfast Defender 2024,” is scheduled to commence next week and will extend through May. All NATO’s 31 members and Sweden will participate in the maneuvers, Cavoli told a press briefing on Thursday in Brussels following a two-day NATO Military Chiefs of Defence meeting as quoted by Xinhua news agency report.

Regarding the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Rob Bauer, Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, said that “There is back and forth in the front” and “Both sides are now in a phase where it is not moving a lot forward one way or the other”.

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UK govt to send 20,000 troops in biggest deployment to NATO exercises

Delegates attend a ceremony for Finland's accession to NATO at the NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, April 4, 2023. Finland on Tuesday formally became the 31st member state of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), ending its military non-alignment in the fastest accession procedure in record time. (Xinhua/Zheng Huansong)

Some 16,000 soldiers will be deployed across eastern Europe from next month to June, taking with them tanks, artillery, helicopters and parachutes…reports Asian Lite News

Britain will send 20,000 armed forces personnel to one of NATO’s largest exercises since the Cold War, Defence Secretary Grant Shapps announced on Monday, warning of increasing threats to the Western-led alliance.

The deployment, which Shapps characterised as the UK’s biggest to NATO in four decades, is aimed at “providing vital reassurance” over the “menace” posed by Russian President Vladimir Putin following his invasion of Ukraine, Shapps said.

The British personnel — from the Royal Air Force, Royal Navy and Army — will deploy across Europe and beyond for the military alliance’s latest “Exercise Steadfast Defender”, alongside personnel from 31 other member countries and Sweden, which is a candidate to join the transatlantic alliance.

“Today’s NATO is bigger than ever but the challenges are bigger too,” Shapps said in a wide-ranging speech in London, in which he warned “the international rules-based order” was facing rising dangers.

“And that’s why the UK has committed… the totality of our air, land and maritime assets to NATO”, he went on.

“In 2024 I am determined to do even more and that’s why I can announce today the UK will send in some 20,000 personnel to lead one of NATO’s largest deployments since the end of the Cold War.”

The UK contingent will include fighter jets and surveillance aircraft, the navy’s most advanced warships and submarines, and a full range of army capabilities, including special operations forces.

London will send a so-called Carrier Strike Group — which features its flagship aircraft carrier and F-35B fighter jets and helicopters — to the exercises in the North Atlantic, Norwegian Sea and Baltic Sea.

Meanwhile some 16,000 soldiers will be deployed across eastern Europe from next month to June, taking with them tanks, artillery, helicopters and parachutes.

Shapps used his most high-profile speech since being appointed to the post in August to argue that the post-Cold War “peace dividend” has ended and Western allies must face down foes including China, Iran, North Korea and Russia.

“It’s been replaced by a period of hard-headed realism,” he said, adding that NATO’s adversaries “are more connected with each other” than ever and Western allies “stand at a crossroads”.

“Our adversaries are busily rebuilding their barriers, old enemies are reanimated, battle lines are being redrawn, the tanks are literally on Ukraine’s lawn and the foundations of the world order are being shaken to their core.”

Shapps also addressed the joint UK-US strikes against Iran-backed Huthi rebels in Yemen last week. The Huthis have repeatedly attacked shipping in the Red Sea in recent months, in protest at the war in Gaza.

The UK minister said the strikes were intended “as a single action”.

But asked if further military action was planned, he replied: “I can’t predict the future for you.”

“We will not put up with a major waterway… being closed on a permanent basis” to international shipping, Shapps added.

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