Advancing NATO’s Collective Defense: Reforming For A Safer Europe

Advancing NATO's Collective Defense: Reforming For A Safer Europe

The collective defense initiative of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was criticized by the former President Donald Trump. Even though a few of NATO members are not meeting their defense budget obligations, remarks of this like give Russia more geopolitical clout by casting doubt on NATO’s long-term capacity to fend off external threats. In order to support the alliance’s collective defense and, by extension, its own, the United States must recognize that certain nations are finding it difficult to reach the 2% target and may wish to push for more efficient ways for their members to contribute.

Current Challenges in European Security

A commitment to “maintain and develop their individual and collective capacity to resist armed attack” was made by member states of the North Atlantic Treaty, which was signed in 1949 by the United States, Canada, and eleven European nations. Member nations have been able to work together to carry out military training, bolster defenses against hybrid assaults, and establish supremacy in Emerging Disruptive Technologies thanks to this guidance. The Wales Summit Declaration was released by the North Atlantic Council of NATO. The leaders of NATO states promised that in reaction to Russia’s unlawful annexation of Crimea, they would raise defense spending to two percent of GDP by 2024. 

The Defense Investment Pledge included in the Declaration also stipulated that member nations should keep enhancing their military capabilities even if they are already meeting the expenditure target. The only three member states that met the 2% target in 2014 were the US, Greece, and the UK, with their respective spending amounting to between 2.13% and 3.75% of their GDP. GDP military obligations were so low that the combined GDP of all European member states was allocated to defense at a rate of about 1.47%. Throughout 2019, expenditures increased as Poland, Romania, and Estonia crossed the 2% mark for the first time. Nonetheless, major geopolitical actors such as France, Germany, and Turkey reported spending less than the requirement.

Rationale for Reform

For NATO, the European Union (EU) is a special and indispensable partner. NATO and the EU collaborate in crisis management, capability development, assistance for their mutual allies in the east and south, and addressing the difficulties posed by expanding strategic rivalry since they share comparable strategic objectives and are confronted with similar threats and problems. 

The parameters of the two organizations’ collaboration and consultation procedures on security-related matters were established in a January 2001 correspondence between the Secretary General of NATO and the Presidency of the European Union. With the signing of the NATO-EU Declaration on European Security and Defense Policy (ESDP) in December 2002 and the agreement to establish a framework for collaboration in March 2003, cooperation advanced even further. The political tenets of the strategic partnership were reaffirmed in the NATO-EU Declaration on ESDP, which was reached on December 16, 2002. These included effective mutual consultation, equality and due regard for the EU and NATO’s decision-making autonomy, respect for the interests of EU and NATO member states, adherence to the UN Charter’s tenets, and the cogent, transparent, and mutually reinforcing development of the military capability requirements common to the two organizations.

The Role of Member States

Regular meetings between NATO and the EU are held to address matters of mutual interest. Meetings are held at various levels, such as with the ministers of foreign and defense, ambassadors, military delegates, and defense consultants. Regular staff-to-staff discussions take place between the International Staff and International Military Staff of NATO, as well as their respective EU counterparts, at all levels. 

Agreements for permanent military interaction have been put in place to make operational collaboration easier. In November 2005, the EU Military Staff welcomed a NATO Permanent Liaison Team, and in March 2006, the EU Cell was established at SHAPE, the military’s strategic command located in Mons, Belgium. During the July 2018 Brussels Summit, the leaders of the Alliance greeted the second Joint Declaration and the concrete outcomes in several domains, emphasizing their intention to expand and strengthen collaboration by executing the shared package of 74 recommendations. 

Wrap Up

In conclusion, The European Council’s June 2018 demand for stronger NATO-EU cooperation was also welcomed by NATO leaders, who acknowledged that the two organizations’ continuing, separate strategic processes present a chance for increased dialogue and collaboration. They understood that the key to cooperative efforts to make the Euro-Atlantic region safer is the creation of coherent, complementing, and interoperable defense capabilities, avoiding duplication. 

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