Latest news with #NATOAllies
Mint
3 hours ago
- Politics
- Mint
Will Ukraine be allowed to join NATO under Security Guarantees? Explained
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has suggested an Article 5–style arrangement for Ukraine as part of providing 'Security Guarantees' to Kyiv, which has faced relentless Russian bombardment since February 2022. But does this also amount to a promise of NATO membership for Ukraine as a guarantee of its future security in the face of the Russian war? Speaking with press after meeting with Zekensky and other European leaders at the White House, NATO secretary general Rutte said the team was discussing 'some Article 5 type arrangement' for Ukraine to protect it from future invasions by Russia. His comments were backed by Finland President Cai-Göran Alexander Stubb who said, 'We spoke of Article 5 type of Security Guarantees.' Article 5 provides that if a NATO ally is the victim of an armed attack, each and every other member of the Alliance will consider this act of violence as an armed attack against all members and will take the actions it deems necessary to assist the Ally attacked. It says, 'The Parties agree that an armed attack against one or more of them in Europe or North America shall be considered an attack against them all and consequently they agree that, if such an armed attack occurs, each of them, in exercise of the right of individual or collective self-defence recognized by Article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations, will assist the Party or Parties so attacked by taking forthwith, individually and in concert with the other Parties, such action as it deems necessary, including the use of armed force, to restore and maintain the security of the North Atlantic area.' If Ukraine receives Article 5–style assurances, any future Russian attack would obligate all NATO allies to come to Kyiv's defense. But a NATO membership for Ukraine? Maybe not! Mark Rutte, speaking on NATO membership for Ukraine, said it was not under discussion but on what securities could be provided to the country. He also revealed that the United States and some other countries are against NATO membership for Ukraine. Also Read | Did Zelensky agree to a ceasefire? What do we know from Trump-Zelensky meeting? 'The situation is this - that the US and some other countries have said that they are against NATO membership for Ukraine. The official NATO position ... is that there is an irreversible path for Ukraine into NATO,' Mark Rutte said. 'But what we are discussing here is not NATO membership, what we are discussing here is Article 5 type of security guarantees for Ukraine and what exactly they will entail will now be more specifically discussed.' The 'Security Guarantees' would ensure that Russia does not invade Ukraine again. There was also no talks of sending troops on the ground in Ukraine but a NATO-style protection for Ukraine. NATO has 32 member countries called the NATO Allies. NATO was created by 12 countries on April 4, 1949 and over years, 20 more countries have joined the alliance. The member countries of NATO are: Belgium (1949), Canada (1949), Denmark (1949), France (1949), Iceland (1949), Italy (1949), Luxembourg (1949), Netherlands (1949), Norway (1949), Portugal (1949), United Kingdom (1949), United States (1949), Greece (1952), Türkiye (1952), Germany (1955), Spain (1982), Czechia (1999), Hungary (1999), Poland (1999), Bulgaria (2004), Estonia (2004), Latvia (2004), Lithuania (2004), Romania (2004), Slovakia (2004), Slovenia (2004), Albania (2009), Croatia (2009), Montenegro (2017), North Macedonia (2020), Finland (2023), and Sweden (2024).
Al Arabiya
26-06-2025
- Business
- Al Arabiya
Lavrov says NATO spending increase won't significantly affect Russia's security
NATO's decision to increase defense spending will not significantly affect Russia's security, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday. NATO allies on Wednesday agreed to raise their collective spending goal to 5 percent of gross domestic product over the next decade, citing what they called the long-term threat posed by Russia and the need to strengthen civil and military resilience.
Reuters
26-06-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Turkey backs NATO's 5% defence spending goal, plans nationwide air shield, source says
ANKARA, June 26 (Reuters) - Turkey supports NATO's decision to more than double its defence spending target to 5% of GDP by 2035 and is already exceeding the previous 2% benchmark, a Turkish defence ministry source said on Thursday. NATO allies on Wednesday agreed to raise their collective spending goal to 5% of gross domestic product over the next decade, citing the long-term threat posed by Russia and the need to strengthen civil and military resilience. 'Turkey is above the 2% target criterion under the Defence Spending Pledge,' the source said. 'As NATO's second-largest army, Turkey is among the top five contributors to the alliance's operations and missions.' The source said Turkey had fulfilled all its NATO capability targets and was continuing to invest in defence industry development and research. It plans to expand a layered air defence network across the country, centred around its national "Steel Dome" project. 'We are investing in air defence systems, hypersonic, ballistic and cruise missile capabilities, unmanned land, sea and air systems, as well as next-generation aircraft carriers, frigates, and tanks,' the source said. The new NATO target includes at least 3.5% of GDP for core defence spending, with the remainder to be spent on security-related infrastructure to improve civil preparedness and resilience.
Al Arabiya
26-06-2025
- Business
- Al Arabiya
Turkey backs NATO's 5 percent defense spending goal, plans nationwide air shield: Source
Turkey supports NATO's decision to more than double its defense spending target to 5 percent of GDP by 2035 and is already exceeding the previous 2 percent benchmark, a Turkish defense ministry source said on Thursday. NATO allies on Wednesday agreed to raise their collective spending goal to 5 percent of gross domestic product over the next decade, citing the long-term threat posed by Russia and the need to strengthen civil and military resilience. 'Turkey is above the 2 percent target criterion under the Defense Spending Pledge,' the source said. 'As NATO's second-largest army, Turkey is among the top five contributors to the alliance's operations and missions.' The source said Turkey had fulfilled all its NATO capability targets and was continuing to invest in defense industry development and research. It plans to expand a layered air defense network across the country, centered around its national 'Steel Dome' project. 'We are investing in air defense systems, hypersonic, ballistic and cruise missile capabilities, unmanned land, sea and air systems, as well as next-generation aircraft carriers, frigates, and tanks,' the source said. The new NATO target includes at least 3.5 percent of GDP for core defense spending, with the remainder to be spent on security-related infrastructure to improve civil preparedness and resilience.
CNA
25-06-2025
- Business
- CNA
Trump reassures allies as NATO agrees 'historic' spending hike
THE HAGUE: United States President Donald Trump took a victory lap at NATO's Hague summit on Wednesday (Jun 25), joining leaders in reaffirming the "ironclad" commitment to protect each other after allies agreed to his demand to ramp up defence spending. The unpredictable US leader appeared keen to take the plaudits as he secured a key foreign policy win by getting NATO's 32 countries to agree to meet his headline target of 5 per cent of gross domestic product on defence spending. In a move that will provide reassurance to European allies worried about the threat from Russia, Trump signed off on a final leaders' declaration confirming "our ironclad commitment" to NATO's collective defence pledge that an attack on one is an attack on all. "It's a great victory for everybody, I think, and we will be equalised," Trump said of the new spending commitment, ahead of the summit's main session. Diplomats said that behind closed doors, Trump insisted there was no greater ally than Washington and urged others to spend some of the new money on US weaponry. The deal hatched by NATO is a compromise that allows Trump to claim triumph, while in reality providing wiggle room for cash-strapped governments in Europe. It sees countries promise to dedicate 3.5 per cent of GDP to core military spending by 2035, and a further 1.5 per cent to broader security-related areas such as infrastructure. Entering the meeting, leaders lined up to declare the summit's spending hike as "historic". NATO allies say the increase is needed to counter a growing threat from Russia but also to keep Trump engaged, with the US leader long complaining that Europe spends too little on its own defence. Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever said: "As Europeans, we should realise that our long break from history is over." The continent needed to take responsibility for its own security "in a very difficult time", added De Wever. "TOTALLY COMMITTED" Everything was carefully choreographed at the gathering in The Hague to keep the volatile US president on board: from chopping back the official part of the meeting to putting him up overnight in the royal palace. Trump rattled his allies by appearing to cast some doubt on the validity of NATO's mutual defence clause, known as Article Five of the alliance treaty, telling reporters on the way to The Hague that it "depends on your definition". "There's numerous definitions of Article Five," he said. But Rutte insisted Trump remained "totally committed" to the pledge - which was reaffirmed unequivocally in the summit's final statement. Underpinning the leaders' discussions on defence was Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, and in another sop to the demands of allies, the US allowed NATO to refer to the "long-term threat posed by Russia to Euro-Atlantic security" in the communique. Though its language was watered down from previous years, the declaration also said allies would continue to support Ukraine, "whose security contributes to ours", and could use money from the new spending pledge to fund military aid for Kyiv. "NICE GUY" That came as Trump was poised to meet the war-torn country's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on the summit sidelines. Zelenskyy is playing a less central role here than at previous summits, to avoid a bust-up with Trump after their infamous Oval Office shouting match. But Trump described him as a "nice guy" and added that he was talking to Russian President Vladimir Putin about the war, saying: "I think progress is being made." But despite Rutte's insistence that Ukraine's bid for membership remains "irreversible", NATO's statement avoided any mention of Kyiv's push to join after Trump ruled it out. Hungary's Kremlin-friendly Prime Minister Viktor Orban was more categorical.
