The heads of state and government participating in the NATO summit in Madrid issued a 22-paragraph joint statement today in which they declared that they “stand together in unity and solidarity and reaffirm the enduring transatlantic bond between our nations.” They affirmed that their commitment to the Washington Treaty and its Article V is “iron-clad” and that “We are united in our commitment to democracy, individual liberty, human rights, and the rule of law.”
Not surprisingly, the statement revolves to a great extent around the condemnation of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine—which they call a “war of aggression” that is “a blatant violation of international law.” At the same time “We stand in full solidarity with the government and the people of Ukraine in the heroic defense of their country.”
Then the document spells out what the Alliance considers it is facing. “The Russian Federation is the most significant and direct threat to Allies’ security and to peace and stability in the Euro-Atlantic area,” the document which then pays lip service to the threat of terrorism. China is lumped together with cyber, space, and hybrid and other asymmetric threats and other forms of “systemic competition” which “challenge our interests, security, and values and seek to undermine the rules-based international order.”
