Latest news with #Vandier
Los Angeles Times
25-06-2025
- Business
- Los Angeles Times
Wary of Washington, Europe frets it will be left behind on an AI battlefield
THE HAGUE — Days before NATO was set to convene in the Netherlands, one of its top commanders, Pierre Vandier, tasked with transforming the alliance for the next fight, put out a call: Britain will need to step up its intelligence contributions to the alliance going forward. 'The UK has this in its DNA,' Vandier said. It was an acknowledgment that the United States, pivoting toward a far greater intelligence threat from China, may leave its European allies behind in their own existential fight with Russia. A lack of reliability on the world's leading AI superpower, European officials say, will render the continent vulnerable in a race for intelligence superiority set to revolutionize global battlefields. The rush toward artificial intelligence has been a strong undercurrent at the NATO Summit in the Hague this week, serving not only as a gathering for leaders of the alliance, but also as a defense industry forum for emerging power players in Silicon Valley, treated in Holland's gilded halls as a new kind of royalty. 'AI is going to be an important part of warfare going forward, but it's still very new, and NATO tends not to be at the tip of the spear of innovation — and there is some division within the alliance on how to develop AI, when it comes to AI regulation and safety,' said Max Bergmann, director of the Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. 'Tech companies don't hold the same pride of place in the European economic system, and they're not consumed with the need to compete with China militarily — they are much more focused on Russia,' Bergmann added. 'While the U.S. is about winning the AI race, Europeans are watching what's happening in Ukraine and saying, 'we just need to deter Russia.'' So far, for European capitals, that has meant incorporating powerful data collection and processing systems into defense departments and improving the performance of automated surveillance systems and drones — skills well within Europe's capabilities. Several German and French companies, such as Helsing, Azur and Quantum Systems, are already developing products based on what they are seeing in Ukraine. But the next fight will require technologies that dwarf existing drone capabilities, experts said. 'We've been predicting for a while that there would be integration of AI into military research and development and defense systems, and I expect, for example, that advanced cyber capabilities will play an important role in the coming years,' said Jonas Vollmer, chief operating officer of the AI Futures Project. 'Europe has influence, but it is grappling with the difficult reality that they don't have access or strong domestic development of frontier AI systems, and they are pretty far behind.' Last year, NATO allies agreed to speed up the adoption of artificial intelligence in its operations. There are signs the bloc senses urgency to do so, signing an agreement with Palantir, a U.S.-based technology company, to incorporate AI into its warfighting systems after just six months of negotiations. The United States and China are far ahead of competitors in the race for AI superiority, measured in raw computing power and proximity to general artificial intelligence — AI that has human-level cognitive capabilities to learn and develop on its own – and ultimately to superintelligence, surpassing the human mind. Still, the United Kingdom is a serious player in the field. The kingdom ranks third in government investment in AI research anywhere in the world and maintains strong partnerships with some of the most powerful U.S. players. In its most recent defense strategy, also published shortly before the NATO summit, Britain committed to integrate artificial intelligence into its 'NATO-first' national security approach. 'Forecasts of when Artificial General Intelligence will occur are uncertain but shortening, with profound implications for Defence,' the document reads. Europe's race for intelligence capabilities is driven, in part, by lessons learned on the battlefields of Ukraine. But Russia is not seen as an AI powerhouse in and of itself. Moscow instead uses low-cost tests of drone incursions and cyberattacks to keep pressure on the alliance, Vandier told the Times of London in an interview. 'The aim, I think, is to consume all our energy in purely defensive actions, which are very costly,' he said. Whether Russia can enhance its own AI capabilities is an open question. 'The key ingredients of being at the frontier with AI are talent and data centers,' said Vollmer, of the AI Futures Project. 'Russia lags far behind on both,' he added, 'but they can collaborate with China, of course.'
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
NATO needs to get ready for modern war — and fast, top commander tells BI
NATO isn't the 21st-century fighting force it needs to be, a top commander told Business Insider. Adm. Pierre Vandier said member states must reinvest in defense to prepare for the next war. And the alliance has several different initiatives underway that are helping it modernize fast. NATO still has work to do before it becomes the 21st-century fighting force that it needs to be, and allies need to invest heavily in their domestic defense industries, a top commander told Business Insider. "I think it's a struggle," Adm. Pierre Vandier, NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Transformation and the man overseeing alliance modernization efforts, said during an interview this week at his office in Norfolk, Virginia. In recent decades, NATO militaries have been focused predominantly on lower-end counterinsurgency operations in places like Africa or Afghanistan, depending heavily on expeditionary forces enabled by uncontested airpower. In this context, allies thought differently about their own defense, and supporting industries were not sufficiently focused on preparing the alliance for a modern war against a top adversary. Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 set off alarm bells throughout NATO, with Western officials warning that Moscow could feel emboldened to push deeper into Europe if it wasn't adequately deterred, presenting the alliance with the possibility of a large-scale conventional war or worse. The past three years have seen many NATO states dramatically boost their defense spending and buy more weaponry. Countries along the eastern and northern edges — the front lines of the alliance, as they share borders with Russia — are hardening their defenses. However, many still argue that there's more work to be done. "I think we forgot all the big principles of a symmetric war, and so it's where we need to reinvest," Vandier said, referring to a conflict in which combatants are more evenly matched. He added that because the defense industrial base shrank so much over the years, ramping it up is "very difficult." Delivering on high-end platforms like warships, fighter jets, and missiles can be a yearslong process. A single F-35 stealth aircraft, for instance, takes around 18 months to build. Vandier warned that if a fight breaks out before NATO has sufficiently bolstered its defenses, the alliance could have a major problem. He acknowledged that NATO still has a long way to go to reach its full potential as a modern fighting force. Member countries are pledging to spend more of their respective GDPs on defense, but the process of going from funding projects to delivery is far from quick. "It's a question of speed," Vandier said. In 2014, when Russia illegally annexed the Crimean peninsula, NATO members agreed to spend 2% of their national GDP on defense. Since then, amid increased Russian aggression, the number of allies that have met or exceeded that goal has steadily risen from three to 22 last year. Earlier this week, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said all allies will reach the 2% target this year, though he is calling for heads of state to agree to a new target — 5%, in line with calls from the Trump administration — at a summit later this month. "The fact is, we need a quantum leap in our collective defense," he said Monday at an event in London. "We must have more forces and capabilities to implement our defense plans in full. The fact is, danger will not disappear even when the war in Ukraine ends." In its quest to become a modern fighting force, NATO is also focused on integrating asymmetric solutions like drones and other new emerging technologies into its planning. The conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East have highlighted the value of uncrewed systems. Vandier and his Allied Command Transformation are at the forefront of these efforts. One initiative they've rolled out is Task Force X, an experiment underway in the Baltic Sea that uses drones, artificial intelligence, and other tech to monitor and deter aggressive Russian activity in the region. Unlike the West's traditional weapons procurement process, which can be slow, Task Force X is NATO's attempt to showcase its speed by quickly deploying cheap and readily available systems to counter Russia. It is simultaneously working to integrate emerging tech with traditional maritime operations. Vandier emphasized the importance of achieving what he described as "digital transformation at speed." He said that another crucial element in NATO's efforts to modernize is leveraging commercial space to improve command, control, communications, and computers, simply known as C4, and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities. "These are, I think, the two most critical domains for the alliance at war," the commander said. Meanwhile, NATO just shared it has signed a contract with US commercial satellite imaging company Planet Labs PBC in a first-of-its-kind agreement that will give the alliance expanded surveillance capabilities, helping it track potential threats such as new defensive fortifications or large troop build-ups along the eastern edge. Vandier said that, aside from the US, no other country in NATO had this capability and stressed that if America pivots all its surveillance focus to the Pacific, the alliance needs to be self-sufficient and have the resources to keep tabs on Russia, Ukraine, and the rest of Europe, from the Arctic down to the Black Sea. The seven-figure agreement is another example of NATO's efforts to modernize at speed and firm up Europe's defenses. "We've been able to do that in three months, from idea to delivery," Vandier said. "Three months to find the money, make the contract, put that in the field." Read the original article on Business Insider
Business Insider
13-06-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
NATO needs to get ready for modern war — and fast, top commander tells BI
NATO still has work to do before it becomes the 21st-century fighting force that it needs to be, and allies need to invest heavily in their domestic defense industries, a top commander told Business Insider. "I think it's a struggle," Adm. Pierre Vandier, NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Transformation and the man overseeing alliance modernization efforts, said during an interview this week at his office in Norfolk, Virginia. In recent decades, NATO militaries have been focused predominantly on lower-end counterinsurgency operations in places like Africa or Afghanistan, depending heavily on expeditionary forces enabled by uncontested airpower. In this context, allies thought differently about their own defense, and supporting industries were not sufficiently focused on preparing the alliance for a modern war against a top adversary. Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 set off alarm bells throughout NATO, with Western officials warning that Moscow could feel emboldened to push deeper into Europe if it wasn't adequately deterred, presenting the alliance with the possibility of a large-scale conventional war or worse. The past three years have seen many NATO states dramatically boost their defense spending and buy more weaponry. Countries along the eastern and northern edges — the front lines of the alliance, as they share borders with Russia — are hardening their defenses. However, many still argue that there's more work to be done. "I think we forgot all the big principles of a symmetric war, and so it's where we need to reinvest," Vandier said, referring to a conflict in which combatants are more evenly matched. He added that because the defense industrial base shrank so much over the years, ramping it up is "very difficult." Delivering on high-end platforms like warships, fighter jets, and missiles can be a yearslong process. A single F-35 stealth aircraft, for instance, takes around 18 months to build. Vandier warned that if a fight breaks out before NATO has sufficiently bolstered its defenses, the alliance could have a major problem. He acknowledged that NATO still has a long way to go to reach its full potential as a modern fighting force. Member countries are pledging to spend more of their respective GDPs on defense, but the process of going from funding projects to delivery is far from quick. "It's a question of speed," Vandier said. In 2014, when Russia illegally annexed the Crimean peninsula, NATO members agreed to spend 2% of their national GDP on defense. Since then, amid increased Russian aggression, the number of allies that have met or exceeded that goal has steadily risen from three to 22 last year. Earlier this week, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said all allies will reach the 2% target this year, though he is calling for heads of state to agree to a new target — 5%, in line with calls from the Trump administration — at a summit later this month. "The fact is, we need a quantum leap in our collective defense," he said Monday at an event in London. "We must have more forces and capabilities to implement our defense plans in full. The fact is, danger will not disappear even when the war in Ukraine ends." Modernizing at speed In its quest to become a modern fighting force, NATO is also focused on integrating asymmetric solutions like drones and other new emerging technologies into its planning. The conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East have highlighted the value of uncrewed systems. Vandier and his Allied Command Transformation are at the forefront of these efforts. One initiative they've rolled out is Task Force X, an experiment underway in the Baltic Sea that uses drones, artificial intelligence, and other tech to monitor and deter aggressive Russian activity in the region. Unlike the West's traditional weapons procurement process, which can be slow, Task Force X is NATO's attempt to showcase its speed by quickly deploying cheap and readily available systems to counter Russia. It is simultaneously working to integrate emerging tech with traditional maritime operations. Vandier emphasized the importance of achieving what he described as "digital transformation at speed." He said that another crucial element in NATO's efforts to modernize is leveraging commercial space to improve command, control, communications, and computers, simply known as C4, and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities. "These are, I think, the two most critical domains for the alliance at war," the commander said. Meanwhile, NATO just shared it has signed a contract with US commercial satellite imaging company Planet Labs PBC in a first-of-its-kind agreement that will give the alliance expanded surveillance capabilities, helping it track potential threats such as new defensive fortifications or large troop build-ups along the eastern edge. Vandier said that, aside from the US, no other country in NATO had this capability and stressed that if America pivots all its surveillance focus to the Pacific, the alliance needs to be self-sufficient and have the resources to keep tabs on Russia, Ukraine, and the rest of Europe, from the Arctic down to the Black Sea. The seven-figure agreement is another example of NATO's efforts to modernize at speed and firm up Europe's defenses. "We've been able to do that in three months, from idea to delivery," Vandier said. "Three months to find the money, make the contract, put that in the field."
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
NATO expands satellite surveillance to monitor Ukraine, eastern flank
NATO is rolling out a new satellite surveillance system designed to monitor military activity in Ukraine and along the alliance's eastern borders, senior commander Admiral Pierre Vandier told Bloomberg in comments published on June 12. The initiative, named Smart Indication and Warning Broad Area Detection (SINBAD), will allow NATO to scan vast territories with unprecedented frequency, using AI-powered analysis to detect changes and alert allies to potential threats. The alliance has reportedly selected U.S. satellite imaging firm Planet Labs as the project's key partner. "Today, we're not certain the Russians will stop at Ukraine," Vandier said. "We'll be able to tell them: we're watching," he added. Vandier, who oversees the alliance's battlefield innovations, emphasized that the ability to monitor troop movements and detect ceasefire violations has become a central concern for European allies, particularly as discussions continue around future peace frameworks for Ukraine. Previously, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer initiated a so-called "coalition of the willing," uniting countries that would back a potential peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia. So far, at least 37 countries have been involved in the coalition's discussions, with 15 reportedly ready to contribute their troops. Other members have been asked to provide other forms of support, including intelligence, arms, or naval support. The launch of SINBAD comes as NATO seeks to boost its own capabilities in space surveillance, a field where the alliance has long relied heavily on U.S. assets. While the U.S. remains central to NATO's space strategy, European allies are moving to reduce dependency, especially amid shifting U.S. foreign policy under President Donald Trump. Trump has repeatedly cast doubt on the U.S. commitment to NATO, signaled intentions to reduce U.S. troop presence in Europe, and blamed Ukraine's pursuit of alliance membership for provoking the war. The alliance is also expected to endorse a new defense spending benchmark, 5% of economic output, with 3.5% for core defense and 1.5% for related sectors, at its upcoming summit in The Hague on June 24–25. President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that Ukraine has been invited to attend the NATO leaders' summit. "We were invited to the NATO summit. I think this is important," Zelensky said during a June 2 press conference. Zelensky noted ongoing discussions with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and other alliance officials on Ukraine's potential role and outcomes at the summit. Read also: Russia doubts NATO's Article 5, could use 'little green men' to test it, German intelligence chief warns We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
NATO expands satellite surveillance to monitor Russian activity
Admiral Pierre Vandier, Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, has stated that the Alliance is expanding its satellite surveillance capabilities to cover larger areas, enabling NATO to track military movements in Ukraine and along Russia's borders with Eastern European countries. Source: Vandier in an interview with Bloomberg, as reported by European Pravda Details: Vandier said that the new tool will allow NATO to monitor "huge areas", including manoeuvres, troop movements and battlefield actions for the first time. "Today we're not certain the Russians will stop at Ukraine. We'll be able to tell them: we're watching," he noted. Bloomberg reports that NATO has selected the American satellite imagery provider Planet Labs to implement the initiative. The new project has been named Smart Indication And Warning Broad Area Detection (SINBAD). It aims to conduct frequent monitoring of large areas across the globe throughout the year, using artificial intelligence to detect changes and automatically issue warnings. An Alliance official told Bloomberg that the technology could also be used to monitor the Arctic, which is becoming increasingly strategic due to rising Russian and Chinese interests in the region. Background: NATO member states are preparing to increase defence spending to 5% of GDP. Part of these funds will support Ukraine, which could significantly strengthen the capabilities of Ukraine's defence forces. The new spending target is expected to be divided: 3.5% of GDP for direct military needs and another 1.5% for broader security projects, including infrastructure. Some NATO countries, such as Canada and Luxembourg, may provide aid to Ukraine and consider this to be fulfilling the new 5% GDP defence spending commitment. Read more: No promises, just funding: NATO Hague summit to approve new ways to support Ukraine in fight Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
