Helsingborg, Sweden (EFE).- NATO foreign ministers began their two-day meeting in Helsingborg, Sweden, on Thursday amid tension with Russia over the latest incidents involving drones in the Baltic countries.
The meeting, precisely on the shores of the Øresund Strait, which connects the North Sea and the Baltic, is the first hosted by Sweden since its accession to the Atlantic Alliance two years ago.
The allies will also meet this week for the first time since the United States announced the withdrawal of thousands of soldiers from bases in Europe.
The event began with an informal dinner at Sofiero Palace, a summer residence of the Swedish monarchs, hosted by King Charles XVI Gustaf, Queen Silvia, and Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson.
Hours earlier, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte explained that in Helsingborg they are going to «prepare the ground» for the leaders’ summit in Ankara on July 7 and 8, and that will focus on «defence investment, industrial production capabilities, and continued support for Ukraine.»
»In Ankara, we must show that we are making real progress, that we are delivering, that means producing more, strengthening our supply chains and stockpiles, producing faster, and ensuring that our militaries have what they need to deter and defend,» Rutte assured.
Drone alerts
Rutte also referred to recent alerts about possible drones in Baltic countries’ airspace, calling Russia’s allegations that these countries allow Ukraine to launch attacks with unmanned aerial vehicles from their territory «ridiculous.»
Regarding the latest incidents, which have led to multiple air alerts being declared in Latvia and Lithuania in recent days and a drone being shot down by an allied fighter jet in Estonia, the Dutch politician downplayed the situation.
»NATO is always prepared for every eventuality, and what happened over the last couple of days again is what we trained and prepared for, and this is a calm, decisive, and proportionate response to any threat,» he added.
Both the governments of the Baltic countries and Ukraine maintain that the drones were flying over Russian territory towards targets in the Leningrad and Pskov regions, in the west of the country, but were diverted by Moscow outside its borders using electronic warfare systems.
US troop withdrawal
The ministerial meeting in Helsingborg is set against the backdrop of the US announcing a withdrawal of 5,000 soldiers from Germany and the suspension of a planned deployment of 4,000 soldiers in Poland.
The news was expected, given the new US security strategy focused on internal politics, Latin America, and the Indo-Pacific region, the Alliance recognizes.
However, diplomatic sources admit that they were surprised by the manner and timing chosen by Washington, immediately after the German Chancellor, Friedrich Merz, considered that the US was being «humiliated» by Iran in the negotiations to end hostilities between Washington and Tehran.
In any case, Rutte has ruled out that this troop withdrawal affects the Alliance’s defense and deterrence capacity. EFE
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