NATO secretary general meets German Chancellor Scholz to discuss defense and security issues
Europe, News June 21, 2023 1 Comment on NATO secretary general meets German Chancellor Scholz to discuss defense and security issuesNATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg arrived in Berlin to meet German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to discuss support for Ukraine, NATO’s deterrence and defense, and prepare for the upcoming Vilnius Summit.
The NATO chief arrived in Germany on June 19, 2023, mainly to discuss NATO’s support to Ukraine as Kyiv pursues a counteroffensive against Moscow. According to the NATO statement, Stoltenberg applauded Germany’s critical role in “providing military, financial and humanitarian aid to Ukraine, and the recent decision to deliver more Patriot missiles.”
Stoltenberg said, “We all want this war to end, but a just peace cannot mean freezing the conflict and accepting a deal dictated by Russia.” The NATO secretary general highlighted that at the upcoming Vilnius Summit, “the Allies would address Ukraine’s membership aspirations” as Allies are working on a “multi-year package of assistance for Ukraine, and are working to establish a new NATO-Ukraine Council to jointly consult on security issues of mutual concern.”
Thank you @Bundeskanzler Scholz for a good meeting to prepare #NATOSummit. I welcome #Germany’s new security strategy, confirming your commitment to #NATO. Your leadership is key to strengthen support to Ukraine, bolster our deterrence & defence and invest more in defence. pic.twitter.com/fXcEHkmE7g
— Jens Stoltenberg (@jensstoltenberg) June 19, 2023
According to the NATO statement, German Chancellor Scholz and Secretary General Stoltenberg also addressed “bolstering NATO’s deterrence and defense”. Stoltenberg said that “We are now putting in place new regional plans, with assigned forces and capabilities, and high levels of readiness.”
Stoltenberg welcomed Germany’s leadership in establishing a new NATO Maritime Centre for the Security of Critical Undersea Infrastructure. He added that “We will agree on a more ambitious defense investment pledge” at the NATO Summit in Vilnius.
While in Berlin, Secretary Stoltenberg also held a delegation-level meeting with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and attended the Day of Industry of the Federation of German Industries (BDI).
On the second day of his visit to Germany, the NATO secretary general traveled to Jagel Air Base with German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius to visit Air Defender 2023 Exercise. Germany is hosting the biggest air deployment drills in NATO’s history, the Air Defender 23 Exercise, over European skies.
During his visit, Stoltenberg recalled the importance of air defense and said that the exercise shows “NATO is ready to defend every inch of Allied territory, and every inch of Allied airspace”, with forces from Europe and North America training together. “It is a strong display of Germany’s commitment and capabilities,” he said.
More than 10,000 participants and 250 military aircraft from 25 different nations are taking part in the German-led exercise as NATO allies seek to increase their interoperability through large-scale air drills and intimidate potential adversaries such as Russia.
Before the beginning of the exercise, German Lieutenant General Gerhartz said that NATO pilots would not “conduct any flights toward Kaliningrad. So this is intended to be defensive.” While U.S. Air National Guard Director Lieutenant General Michael A Loh said that the exercise focuses on “the readiness of our force. It’s about coordination, not just within NATO, but with our other allies and partners outside of NATO.”
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[…] the latest meeting between German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg last week, it was announced that Germany will meet NATO’s target of devoting 2% of its annual […]