The chairman of NATO’s military committee, Admiral Rob Bauer, said on Thursday 19 May, in the context of the war in Ukraine, that NATO had changed era.
“Without doubt, a new era has begun for NATO. Over the past few months, the Alliance has shown that it is able to change its arrangements quickly and effectively. We have implemented the biggest collective defence build-up in a generation”, he said after a meeting of the Alliance’s Military Committee in Chiefs of Defence session.
Faced with the challenges posed by the war in Ukraine, the Admiral explained that time was no longer on the side of the Allies. “The time frames for collective defence are very different from those for crisis management. As we are a defensive Alliance, it is largely our opponent who determines the schedule... And that means we must always be prepared to expect the unexpected”, he warned.
The Supreme Allied Commander Europe, General Tod Wolters, noted that the Alliance had responded in all areas and in all regions to protect all Allies. The Alliance now has eight battlegroups under NATO command deployed along the eastern flank and Mr Wolters has more than 42,000 troops, 120 jets on high alert and more than 20 ships on standby. “Our terrestrial domain has increased tenfold. In the air, the number of fighter jets patrolling the skies has increased by 50%. In the maritime domain, we have filled the standing naval forces”, the general said.
He also announced the resumption of training for Ukraine.
For Supreme Allied Commander ‘Transformation’, General Philippe Lavigne, the war in Ukraine and its consequences for the security of the Euro-Atlantic area are a further trigger to accelerate the path of Alliance transformation.
“We are convinced that we must continue to develop our ability to engage and be able to operate in multi-domain operations, to operate effectively and efficiently in all five operational areas: land, sea, air, space and cyberspace”.
He believes that digital transformation is the most important enabler of multi-domain operations. “A digitally transformed Alliance will be better able to understand the environment, ensuring better situational awareness and this will allow us to make decisions faster and benefit from the synergy of data sharing”, he explained.
Support for the accession of Finland and Sweden
Asked about Finland and Sweden joining NATO, Admiral Rob Bauer highlighted that these two countries had been the Alliance’s closest partners for several years. “We are used to working with them on exercise, both contribute to operations. Whether it’s interoperability, connectivity, modern capabilities, they bring a lot to the table”, he added, saying that their application for membership was “the logical continuation of the relationship”.
For General Wolters, both countries are very well equipped to promote deterrence. “They have the expertise, modern tools, innovation in their armed forces, a strong defence industry, good centres of excellence, which allows them to bring a lot of expertise”, Lavigne said. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)