In an interview with the Telegraph published on April 9, and covered by several press agencies, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg confirmed that NATO is planning to deploy a permanent full-scale military force on the eastern flank. “We have now asked our military commanders to provide options for what we call a reset, a more longer-term adaptation of NATO … a very fundamental transformation” in order to better reflect the “new reality” in Europe. (https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2022/04/09/jens-stoltenberg-need-beefed-up-nato-face-threats-european-security/)
“Regardless of when, how, the war in Ukraine ends, the war has already had long-term consequences for our security. NATO needs to adapt to that new reality. And that’s exactly what we are doing,” Stoltenberg said.
“NATO is the most successful alliance in history for two reasons. One is that we have been able to unite Europe and North America. The other is that we have been able to change when the world is changing. Now the world is changing, and NATO is changing.”
Politico reported that Stoltenberg backed Ukraine’s calls on Western allies, such as Germany, to drop the distinction between defensive and offensive weapons. Berlin has ruled out the provision of offensive weaponry to Kyiv. “Ukraine is now defending itself against an invasion. So everything Ukraine does is defensive,” Stoltenberg told the Telegraph.
The decision on the plan will be taken up at the next NATO Summit, scheduled for June 29-30 in Madrid.
