Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
After extending his term of office for a year, Jens Stoltenberg, Secretary General of NATO, will preside over the work of the Atlantic Summit, which will start tomorrow, Tuesday, in Lithuania and will last for two days, and according to what was announced at the NATO headquarters in Brussels. To host the summit, Stoltenberg will meet on the same day with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the Prime Minister of Sweden to end Turkish intransigence regarding Sweden's accession to the alliance. In the file of Sweden's accession, the media in Brussels reported statements by the Turkish president, in which he said that he would agree to open the doors of NATO to Sweden, but the European Union must open the door to re-negotiations between him and Ankara to obtain membership in the united bloc. The Turkish president noted that his country touched half a century ago. gates of the European Union
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said, in his review of the Vilnius summit with the participation of the leaders of the alliance countries, which will be held on the eleventh and twelfth of this month, that the meeting of the allied leaders "will send a clear message: NATO stands united, and Russian aggression will not bear fruit."
I expect allied leaders to agree to a package of three components, to bring Ukraine closer to NATO,” Mr. Stoltenberg said, speaking from NATO headquarters in Brussels last weekend. The package will include a multi-year program of assistance to ensure interoperability; improved political relations – with the presence of President Zelensky, the inaugural meeting of the new NATO-Ukraine Council; and reaffirming that Ukraine will become a member of NATO, with unity on how Ukraine can bring it closer to its goal.
The Allies will also take major steps to strengthen deterrence and defense, by adopting three new regional defense plans to counter the two main threats to NATO: Russia and terrorism. The plans will support 300,000 troops in a higher state of readiness, including a large air and sea combat force.
Allies are also expected to adopt a Defense Production Action Plan to "accumulate demand, enhance capacity, and increase interoperability" and a more ambitious defense investment pledge to invest at least 2% of GDP per year in defence. The Secretary-General welcomed that new NATO defense spending estimates, released today, show a real increase of 8.3% for European allies and Canada in 2023. “This is the largest increase in decades, and the ninth consecutive year of increases in our defense spending,” the Secretary-General said. So European allies and Canada have invested more than an additional $450 billion since we agreed our Defense Investment Pledge in 2014."
The leaders of Australia, New Zealand, Japan and South Korea, as well as the European Union, are also attending the Vilnius summit. The Secretary-General noted that this will be Finland's first summit as a NATO ally, adding: "We look forward to Sweden joining as soon as possible." After a constructive meeting of senior officials from Turkey, Sweden and Finland last Thursday, Mr. Stoltenberg will meet with President Erdoğan and Prime Minister Kristerson in Vilnius on July 10, as the next step.