At today’s NATO defence ministers’ meeting in Brussels, ministers discussed preparations for the upcoming Hague Summit and adopted capability targets necessary for implementing NATO’s defence plans.
“For the Hague Summit, all member states need to commit to the 5% defence spending target and begin decisively increasing their defence budgets. Estonia will reach this level next year,” said Minister of Defence Hanno Pevkur. “Today, we are agreeing on new capability targets that define which forces and capabilities each ally needs in order to be better prepared to face any threat and to implement collective defence plans. Priorities include air and missile defence, long-range fire capabilities, logistics, and large land manoeuvre formations.”
According to the minister, unity within NATO and transatlantic burden-sharing will be key themes at the upcoming Hague Summit. “It was good to hear U.S. Secretary of Defence Hegseth reaffirm America’s commitment to NATO. At the same time, it is clear that the U.S. expects Europe and Canada to take greater responsibility for European security, as American strategic focus in the coming years will increasingly shift toward threats related to China,” Pevkur said.
Following the North Atlantic Council meeting, an informal session of the NATO-Ukraine Council also took place. “We must stay focused and deliver as much military aid to Ukraine as possible, as quickly as possible, so that Ukraine is in the strongest possible position for any future peace negotiations,” Pevkur added. According to the Minister of Defence, the actions of Russia and China affect global security, and Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine is not merely a regional issue.
Yesterday, the defence ministers convened for a meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group, led by the United Kingdom and Germany, to review Ukraine’s needs and new aid packages. After the meeting, Estonia signed a letter of intent to join a new electronic warfare coalition. Additionally, a meeting was held between the three Baltic States and the lead nations of the three NATO battlegroups, which this time also included Finland and Sweden.
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Photos: NATO kaitseministrite kohtumine Brüsselis (05.06.2025) | Flickr