During a summit in Madrid, the Western military alliance described a world plunged into a dangerous phase of rivalry between great powers and facing myriad threats, from cyber attacks to climate change. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said as the summit concluded on Thursday that member states had agreed to a “fundamental change in our deterrence and defense” and sent a clear message to Moscow that the alliance had a firm line on its eastern border. “We live in a more dangerous world and in a more unpredictable world and we live in a world where we have a hot war going on in Europe,” Stoltenberg said. “At the same time, we know that this could be exacerbated by a full-scale war between Russia and NATO.” Stoltenberg continued: “We want to remove any room for miscalculation, misunderstanding in Moscow about our readiness to protect every inch of NATO territory. That is the main responsibility of NATO. “ During their three-day talks in Spain, NATO leaders formally called on Finland and Sweden to join the alliance after overcoming opposition from Turkey. If the Nordic countries’ accession is approved by the 30 member states, it will give NATO a new 800-mile (1,300-kilometer) border with Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that he would respond the same way if the Scandinavian couple allowed NATO troops and military infrastructure on their territory. He said Russia should “create the same threats to the territory from which threats are made against us.” Estonian Prime Minister Kaya Callas said Putin’s threats were “nothing new”. “Of course, we should expect some kind of surprise from Putin, but I doubt he is attacking directly in Sweden or Finland,” Callas said as she arrived at the summit center. “We will definitely see cyber attacks. We will see hybrid attacks, an information war is taking place. But not the conventional war. “ China has accused the alliance of “malicious attack and stigma” in the country. His mission to the European Union said that NATO “claims that other countries pose challenges, but NATO is causing problems around the world”. NATO leaders turn south for a final summit on Thursday, focusing on the Sahel region of Africa and the Middle East, where political instability – exacerbated by climate change and food insecurity sparked by the war – has shifted. in Ukraine – leads large numbers of migrants to Europe. “It is in our interest to continue working with our close partners in the South to address common challenges together,” Stoltenberg said. But it was Russia that dominated the summit. Stoltenberg said Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine had “brought about the greatest reorganization of our collective defense since the end of the Cold War.” The invasion has destroyed Europe ‘s peace, and in response NATO has dropped troops and weapons into Eastern Europe on a scale not seen in decades. Member States have provided Ukraine with billions in military and political assistance to strengthen its resistance. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who spoke at the summit via video link, called for more. He urged NATO to send modern artillery and other weapons and warned leaders that they either had to provide Kyiv with the help it needed or “face a belated war between Russia and you.” “The question is, who is next? Moldova? Or the Baltic? Or Poland? “The answer is: all of them,” he said. At the summit, NATO leaders agreed to dramatically escalate military force along the east side of the alliance, where countries from Romania to the Baltic states are worried about Russia’s future plans. They announced plans to nearly increase the size of the alliance’s rapid reaction force from 40,000 to 300,000 troops by next year. The troops will be based in their home countries, but will be dedicated to specific countries in the east, where the alliance plans to build up stockpiles of equipment and ammunition. US President Joe Biden, whose country supplies most of NATO’s firepower, has announced a strong boost to the US military presence in Europe, including a permanent US base in Poland, two more US Navy-based destroyers Rota of Spain and two more F35 degrees in the United Kingdom The expansion will keep 100,000 troops in Europe for the immediate future, up from 80,000 before the start of the war in Ukraine. Biden said Putin believed NATO members would split after his invasion of Ukraine, but the Russian leader received the opposite response. “You will achieve the NATO integration of Europe,” Biden said. “And that is exactly what he did not want, but exactly what needs to be done to ensure security for Europe.” However, tensions between NATO allies have risen as the cost of energy and other basic goods skyrocketed, in part due to the war and harsh Western sanctions on Russia. There are also tensions over how the war will end and what, if any, concessions Ukraine should make. Money remains a sensitive issue – just nine of NATO’s 30 members currently meet the organization’s target of spending 2% of gross domestic product on defense. Britain, one of nine, announced an additional 1 1 billion ($ 1.21 billion) in military support to Ukraine on Thursday. In what Stoltenberg called a “transformational” summit, leaders announced NATO’s new Strategic Concept, a set of priorities and goals for a decade. The latest such document, in 2010, called Russia a “strategic partner.” NATO now accuses Russia of using “coercion, overthrow, aggression and annexation” to expand its reach. The 2010 document made no reference to China, but the news was about Beijing’s growing economic and military reach. “China is not our adversary, but we must be clear about the serious challenges it faces,” Stoltenberg said on Wednesday. NATO said China was “struggling to overthrow the rule-based international order, including in space, cyberspace and the sea,” and warned of its close ties with Moscow. The alliance said, however, that it remained “open to a constructive commitment” with Beijing. China responded that NATO was a source of instability and promised to defend its interests. “If NATO places China as a ‘systemic challenge’, we must pay close attention and respond in a coordinated manner. “When it comes to actions that undermine China’s interests, we will receive firm and strong responses,” she said in a statement.
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