IRIA News

NATO Defense Ministers met in Brussels on February 15, 2024, to prepare for the upcoming NATO Summit in Washington in July. The Defense Ministers of NATO member states discussed military spending, ammunition production, and ongoing support for Ukraine.

NATO Defense Ministers discussed progress in increasing ammunition production and the deteriorating security environment in Europe. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg highlighted the urgency to “shift from the slow pace of peacetime to the high tempo production demanded by conflict,” to refill stocks and continue to support Ukraine.

Stoltenberg pointed out that NATO has agreed on contracts worth $10 billion and said, “This helps Ukraine, makes NATO stronger, and provides more highly-skilled jobs in Europe and North America.”

NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg while addressing the media following the meeting said that the Allies have made “historic progress” to increase defense investment and 18 NATO Allies are expected to spend 2% of their GDP on defense this year.

NATO Defense Ministers also addressed the resourcing of the Alliance’s new military plans. Stoltenberg explained that “right now, we are testing these plans through exercise Steadfast Defender, the largest NATO exercise in decades,” which involves 90,000 forces from all 31 NATO Allies and Sweden.

NATO Allies also held discussions with Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov, who virtually joined the meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council.

According to the NATO statement, Secretary General Stoltenberg “welcomed recent announcements of support – including from Canada, Finland, and Norway – covering key capabilities like F-16 equipment and spare parts, as well as air defense.” He also welcomed that a group of Allies are working on a plan to deliver “one million drones to Ukraine,” and that “20 NATO Allies have agreed to form a demining coalition for Ukraine.”

Stoltenberg said, “Together, NATO Allies account for 99% of all military aid to Ukraine and our continued commitment is essential to preserving Ukraine’s freedom. We will continue to stand with Ukraine, for Ukraine’s security, and for ours.”

The NATO statement highlighted that the Defence Ministers also decided to form a new NATO-Ukraine Joint Analysis, Training, and Education Centre in Poland, aimed at sharing lessons learned from the Russia-Ukraine war and creating a structure for Ukrainian forces to learn and train alongside NATO counterparts.

NATO Defense Expenditure

NATO also released the Alliance’s latest defense spending figures on February 14 showing an unprecedented increase in military expenditure by European Allies and Canada.

Stoltenberg announced that “European Allies and Canada have added more than $600 billion” for defense since the Defense Investment Pledge was made in 2014. He said, “In 2024, NATO Allies in Europe will invest a combined total of 380 billion U.S. dollars in defense. For the first time, this amounts to 2% of their combined GDP.”

The NATO secretary general added, “We are making real progress: European Allies are spending more. However, some Allies still have a ways to go. Because we agreed at the Vilnius Summit that all Allies should invest 2% and that 2% is a minimum.”

NATO-EU partnership

On February 14, NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoană with Members of the European Parliament from the Subcommittee on Security and Defense.

During the meeting, the NATO deputy secretary general said that “A close NATO-EU partnership is fundamental to European security, particularly in the context of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine”.

Geoană said that the outcome of the Russia-Ukraine will “shape the future of European security for decades to come” and highlighted the importance of “fostering complementarity, coherence, and interoperability on efforts to enhance the European defense industrial base and defense capabilities”.