Brussels, (EFE).- NATO Defense Ministers confirmed on Thursday a return to calm within the organization after tensions peaked in January over the aspirations of United States President Donald Trump to control Greenland.
Following a meeting in Davos, Switzerland, between Trump and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, it was agreed that the Alliance would become more involved in Arctic security.
The result is «Arctic Sentry,» a reinforced surveillance initiative presented by NATO’s military command on Wednesday, which received unanimous backing from the ministers on Thursday.
Rutte reminded a press conference at the close of the ministerial meeting that NATO is a «coalition of democracies,» which means that «you will always have debates and discussions within NATO.»
“It would be very boring if it wasn’t the case. We have seen it in the past. We have seen huge discussions in the 60’s, in the 70’s and the 80’s, even recently. So, I’m not worried about that,” he explained.
Instead, he considered that «the good news is that this Alliance always finds a way forward, to come together, to focus again on our overarching goal, which is to keep 1 billion people safe under Article Five of the Washington Treaty, that an attack on one is an attack on all.»
When asked about a statement signed by 16 former Supreme Allied Commander Europe (US generals) and former US Ambassadors to the Alliance since the late 1990s, defending the organization’s usefulness for their country, Rutte referred to current US policy.
The US is pivoting toward the Indo-Pacific «at the same time acknowledging the importance of a United States firmly anchored in a NATO Alliance,» summarized the former Dutch Prime Minister.
Rutte stressed that “it is vital to have a strong NATO. But also, for the US security, it’s vital to have a stronger European presence within NATO.”
“That’s exactly what they are doing. So that the US is able also to take care of some of the other issues they have to take care of, like the Indo-Pacific, like the Western Hemisphere still maintaining a strong nuclear and conventional presence in Europe,” he explained.
“So, I think we are really better off today than only one or two years ago,” he concluded.
Belgian Defense Minister Theo Francken stated that he hopes the block can “put an end to this unnecessary crisis and this unpleasant chapter in our 76-year history of NATO.”
“Some European leaders lost their cool. A European military operation ‘to defend Greenland against the US’ was even suggested,” he narrated, adding that he kept talking to all his American “contacts and convincing them of the need for cooperation rather than opposition. NATO diplomacy did its job. The US backed down and stated that the military option had never been on the table and that it was purely a security issue”.
NATO 3.0
Speaking at the Alliance headquarters, US Under Secretary of War Elbridge Colby, called for this iteration of NATO to be based on cooperation rather than a relationship of dependence, with Europe leading conventional defense.
“In terms of how we think about the world and the Alliance’s role in it and how we posture to meet it in practical terms. What is needed is a ‘NATO 3.0’,” Colby suggested. “Something much closer to ‘NATO 1.0’ than the approach of the last thirty-five years.”
Colby specified that the concept mandates greater effort from allies to assume primary responsibility for Europe’s conventional defense. He further stressed that this evolution is not solely focused on increasing military strength, but encompasses a broader approach.
Faced with a world of multiple threats across its entire geography, Colby said in his address to the allied ministers that “times have changed, and it is only prudent that we adapt to meet them.”
“This is not an abandonment of NATO. To the contrary, it is a return to and validation of its foundational purpose,” he stressed, while speaking of “strategic pragmatism and a recognition of our allies’ undeniable ability to step up and lead on Europe’s defense in a way that leaves all of us stronger and safer.” EFE
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