NATO's Current Preoccupations Inform War Gathering
- Nick Lin -
At a one-day conference titled "Preparing NATO
and the Allies for the Future Challenges" in
Sofia, Bulgaria on October 27, NATO Deputy
Secretary General Mircea Geoana gave a speech in
which he outlined NATO's current preoccupations.
The speech was part of the first panel discussion
called "NATO in the next decade: Providing peace
and security in a challenging security
environment."
Geoana stated, "NATO's main task during the
pandemic is to make sure that the health crisis
does not become a security crisis. [...] We have
done what is necessary to keep our forces safe, to
maintain our operational readiness and sustain our
missions and operations, from our presence here in
the Black Sea Region to countering terrorism in
Iraq and Afghanistan." He mentioned that troops in
NATO countries are supporting their national
civilian responses to COVID-19.
He highlighted what he called areas of
instability of concern for the aggressive
alliance, including "North Africa and the greater
Middle East," as well as the "Western Balkans
[...], where we see a confluence of threats from
nationalist, Islamist, radicalist and Russian
interference." Russia's activities in its own
territory were described as "seek[ing] to dominate
its neighbours here in the Black Sea Region and
all along NATO's eastern flank, expanding its
military presence on NATO's borders."
Geoana also cited the importance of cyber warfare
and artificial intelligence for NATO going
forward, saying, "We are involved in a new
technological race where conflicts are
increasingly defined by bytes and big data and AI
as the minister has said, as much as by bullets
and battleships. And NATO is driving innovation.
Our Science and Technology Organization runs a
network of over 6,000 scientists and engineers
from across the Alliance. They're dedicated to
integrating the most advanced technologies in NATO
and Allied platforms [...]
"Throughout NATO's 70 years history, we have
mostly dominated the technological race, but now
that dominance is being challenged. Other nations
like Russia and China, countries that do not share
the same values as we do, are developing new
technologies: from hypersonic missiles, to
autonomous systems, through artificial
intelligence and cyber warfare."
He went on to say, in effect, that post-secondary
institutions and the fields of science and
engineering should be used to maintain NATO's
dominance, and also that the youth should also be
embroiled in "transforming our societies and
ensure that our economies and militaries remain
strong."
He also pushed for NATO members to subordinate
themselves to the supranational interests of the
aggressive alliance in the name of
"interoperability," saying, "[...] we must make
sure that we do not create an unbridgeable
technological gap between Allies. This is why and
where NATO plays a central role, agreeing
standards across all Allies. So we are not 30
separate nations, but one united alliance." He did
not mention NATO's demand that member countries
are expected to commit two per cent of GDP toward
the military, regardless of what the citizens of
those countries want.
 Geoana went on to
claim that NATO is concerned about climate change,
citing a recent speech by NATO Secretary General
Jens Stoltenberg "on the very real and growing
security implications of our changing climate,
which is putting pressure on basic resources like
food, water and energy, fuelling conflict and
increasing existing threats." He added that "NATO
is directly affected by a warming planet. For
example, our Training Mission in Iraq, this summer
in Baghdad, temperatures regularly went above 50
degrees Celsius. Just imagine being in that sort
of heat, let alone wearing full combat gear."
Nothing was said about the fact that NATO and its
aggressive activities are collectively one of the
biggest emitters of greenhouse gases that are
responsible for climate change.
Geoana stated that NATO's Secretary General "is
leading a process called NATO 2030. It aims to
look to the future so that NATO can continue to
protect our almost one billion citizens in the
coming decade and way, way beyond. NATO 2030 is
about keeping the Alliance strong, literally, by
continuing to invest more in capabilities we need
to deter and to defend ourselves on land, at sea,
in the air, in space and cyberspace.
"Also making NATO stronger politically, by
bringing more issues that affect our security to
NATO's table -- even if sometimes, as we see,
these very days, discussions may not be easy.
"And also, third, taking a more global approach.
This doesn't mean a global presence, per se,
because NATO remains a regional organization by
definition and by treaty. But working ever closely
with our partners around the world to defend our
values and way of life. And this is paramount for
our continued success.
"So a strong military, a strong political
Alliance is essential. But this is not enough. We
also need strong societies able to prevent, to
endure, to adapt and bounce back from whatever
happens to them. In the years ahead, we have to
put a much greater emphasis on resilience.
"NATO Allies have already agreed high standards
for resilience in areas including the continuity
of government, secure transport and communications
including 5G, energy, food and water supplies. And
we are working closely with the European Union,
with the private sector, with civil society and
academia on all these, because ultimately,
although resilience is a national responsibility,
it is also a collective effort.
"As part of NATO 2030, we want to go further and
agree stronger requirements for resilience at the
meeting of NATO heads of states and governments
next year."
Geoana concluded by promoting the fiction that
the aggressive NATO alliance ensures the
collective security of its members, while it
threatens the safety and well-being of all those
who do not submit to its agenda. Joining NATO's
protection racket, he claimed has "protected
Bulgaria for the last 15, 16 years now. And it
will continue to do so for many years to come. Our
nations stand united across two continents for a
single, simple and powerful reason: our values,
our freedom, our democracy, our human rights, the
rule of law."
The first panel also featured opening remarks
from organizers and sponsors, as well as remarks
from Bulgarian defence officials.
There were three other panels, which elaborated
NATO's preoccupations outlined in the speech by
Geoana.
The second panel was titled "NATO's key tasks in
the dynamic security environment. Non-military
non-traditional risks and threats to NATO and the
member-states. Shall NATO adopt new roles?" which
was described in conference materials as follows:
"The global pandemic caused by the coronavirus
has a devastating effect on many countries. Many
people were infected and many lost their lives.
The economies are suffering heavy losses. The
crisis is having an impact on NATO activities and
exercises.
"Following the initial shock, Member States and
NATO have been able to coordinate their efforts to
deal with the crisis, making full use of NATO
structures and common capabilities. What are the
implications of the COVID-19 crisis on NATO
operations and capabilities?
"What are the first analyses and lessons learned
from the crisis and what shall we do in order to
be more prepared if similar threats occur in the
future? What conclusions for NATO strategic
foresight, preparedness and cooperation can be
drawn?"
The third panel was titled "Providing NATO with
new capabilities in the new technological
environment," which was described by organizers as
follows:
"The new technologies can greatly enhance NATO's
capabilities. At the same time, their
vulnerabilities and weaknesses must be known. On
the other hand, strategic rivals are also
developing military capabilities based on new
technologies.
"What are NATO's approaches and policies towards
emerging and disruptive technologies and new
non-military threats? How to coordinate planning
and development of capabilities based on the new
technologies? Advantages and disadvantages of the
new technologies. Is there a digital divide within
NATO and how to overcome it? How shall NATO and
the EU better coordinate approaches?"
The last panel was titled "Anticipating the
future. How to prepare NATO and Allies to meet the
future risks and threats" and was described as
follows:
"The complex security environment which combines
old and new risks and threats, requires an
improved assessment and strategic foresight.
Better understanding of the nature of these risks
and strong leadership are needed to deal with
them. This is especially relevant for the use of
new technologies to achieve superiority in
capabilities and operations.
"How can we better prepare NATO and the
member-states to face the future challenges? What
needs to be done at national and NATO levels so
that we can assess the potential negative
developments or impact of new technologies on
defence capabilities and the nature of war as a
whole? What must we do now to be able to predict
and adequately respond to future crises and
challenges? What policies and coordination
mechanisms help us to better prepare to meet the
new crises?"
This article was published in
Volume 50 Number 45 - November 21, 2020
Article Link:
NATO's Current Preoccupations Inform War Gathering - Nick Lin
Website: www.cpcml.ca
Email: editor@cpcml.ca
|
