Nato foreign ministers celebrated the alliance’s 75th anniversary yesterday to warnings that Moscow was as great a threat as ever and concern over stalled US aid for Ukraine in its war against Russia."Nato’s biggest battles to fight are still in the future, and we have to be ready for them," Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis told reporters at Nato headquarters in Brussels, where a ceremony with birthday cake and marching bands could not mask the sombre mood.Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, who met his Nato counterparts there, urged the 32 member states to provide his country with new additional air defence systems, especially US-made Patriot missiles."I didn’t want to spoil the birthday party for Nato, but I felt compelled to deliver a very sobering message on behalf of Ukrainians about the state of Russian air attacks on my country," he told a press conference.Overnight yesterday a Russian drone attack struck residential buildings in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv and an energy facility in the region, killing several people and cutting power for 350,000 residents, Ukrainian officials said.Kuleba said the Nato ministers had agreed to identify and find air defence systems in their arsenals to send to Ukraine.North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato) Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the United States, where an aid package for Ukraine worth some $60bn is blocked in Congress, needed its allies more than ever with the conflict that started with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine now in its third year."Europe needs North America for its security," Stoltenberg said at the ceremony. "At the same time, North America also needs Europe. European allies provide world-class militaries, vast intelligence networks and unique diplomatic leverage, multiplying America’s might."The Kremlin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 re-invigorated Nato as it was confronted by one of the most serious challenges since it emerged from the ashes of World War II to counter the Soviet Union and its Warsaw Pact group.The alliance has bolstered its forces across eastern Europe and grown to 32 members after Finland and Sweden joined its ranks.However, while the war has refocused the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato)’s attention on its old nemesis Moscow to the east, there is also another threat unnerving allies from leading power the United States in the west.That’s the possible return to the White House of Trump, who undermined Nato’s collective defence guarantee by saying that he would encourage Russia to attack any members not spending enough on defence."I do not believe in America alone, just as I don’t believe in Europe alone," Stoltenberg said. "I believe in America and Europe together in Nato, because, fundamentally, we are stronger and safer together."In a bid to stave off Trump’s criticisms, Nato has showcased increased spending by its European allies – with 20 members this year set to hit a target of 2% of GDP for defence.Biden – who will face off against Trump at elections in November – insisted that the United States must stick to the promises it has made to its allies in Europe to help protect them if attacked."We must remember that the sacred commitment we make to our allies – to defend every inch of Nato territory – makes us safer too," he said in a statement.Stoltenberg said after the talks with Ukraine’s Kuleba that Nato allies had agreed to "go back and look into their inventories" to see if they could spare any more air defence systems for Ukraine.Any prospect of a potential defeat for Ukraine has sent shivers through Nato allies close to Russia who fear they could be next in the Kremlin’s sights."Nice stories don’t win wars," Lithuania’s Landsbergis wrote on X. "Without significant deliveries of weapons and real security guarantees the glorious narrative of unity and solidarity with Ukraine is wearing thin and rapidly approaching cynicism."In a bid to ensure long-term support for Kyiv in the face of a possible return by Trump, Stoltenberg has proposed that Nato members set up a €100bn ($108bn) five-year fund.As part of the plan he is also pushing to get Nato as an organisation more directly involved in co-ordinating deliveries.That is something the alliance has so far refused to do out of concern it could drag it closer to war with Russia.Nato countries gave the go-ahead to work on the plan on Wednesday, but there still remain many questions over financing and how far the alliance is willing to go to thrash it out before a summit in Washington in July.Under a proposal by Stoltenberg, Nato would take over work done by a US-led ad hoc coalition known as the Ramstein group, in part to guard against any cut in US support if Trump returns to the White House, diplomats said.Nato began with 12 members from North America and Europe, founded in response to growing fears that the Soviet Union posed a military threat to European democracies during the Cold War.At its heart is the concept of collective defence and that an attack on one member is considered an attack on all, giving US military protection to Western Europe.Seventy-five years on, it has retaken a central role in world affairs after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, leading European governments to view Moscow once more as a major security threat.Nato’s two newest members, Finland and Sweden, joined in direct response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
April 05, 2024 | 12:24 AM