The NATO Secretary General has told MEPs that closer cooperation between NATO and the EU is essential to boost defence production, sustain support for Ukraine and strengthen European security.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte addressed the Renew Europe Global Europe Forum at the European Parliament on Tuesday, stressing the importance of closer alignment between NATO and the European Union in response to growing security challenges.
Speaking to MEPs and invited guests, Rutte highlighted increased defence spending by NATO allies, efforts to expand defence industrial output, and continued military and political support for Ukraine as central pillars of Euro-Atlantic security. He argued that cooperation between NATO and the EU allows both organisations to act more effectively in an increasingly contested security environment.
“When we combine our strengths, of NATO and the EU, we can more effectively tackle the many challenges we face,” Rutte said.
He linked this cooperation directly to Ukraine’s ability to resist future aggression and to Europe’s capacity to accelerate defence production.
“Working together, we keep Ukraine strong today and able to defend itself against any aggression in the future,” he said. “And working together, we can produce more defence capabilities, and we can produce them faster. We can innovate better and outsmart our competitors.”
Following his keynote address, the Secretary General took part in a discussion with Members of the European Parliament, addressing a range of current security challenges facing Europe and the wider Euro-Atlantic area.
Deeper EU and NATO cooperation is not possible and not desirable. NATO is a security alliance and the EU is an economic one. They should stay out of each others perspective fields because neither is very good at the others job.
The EU is far too riddled with bad actors like France, Ireland and Hungary I.es nations who put their own immediate economic interest ahead of the security needs of the continent.
The EU should just stay out of military matters. It’s got more than enough to worry about on the economic front.
All EU nation put their interests first; EU is a system to discuss conflicting interests to come up with the best possible outcome for everyone. As for “bad actors”, France has been deploying nuclear capable rafales in sweden and poland, among other things. And btw, economy, industry are closely linked to military capacities.
bad actors how? in terms of military France isn’t a bad actor and Ireland has no army lol. Seems like you’re just naming the countries that you personally don’t like
The EU needs to have a common defence policy. NATO being a security alliance doesn’t mean the EU can’t also be one: You simply have the EU be a NATO member, instead of the 30 odd member states (just like the US is a NATO member instead of the 50 states).
The idea that the EU being a security alliance is incompatible with NATO is just US administrations afraid of EU states being strategically autonomous and not reliant on the US. Given recent events being able to operate without the US is vital.
Also “the EU has several bad actors” you say, but then mention 3 countries, 2 of which are in NATO, and ignore the biggest bad actor in NATO; the United States.
A common European army, as and when NATO finally fails after Trump’s disruption is inevitable. The UK needs to make a defence decision – stick with the fickle America, after Trump departs the scene there is no guarantee the US will return to playing the game of NATO and the Trump years can just be put to a ‘rocky’ patch.
Personally my money is is for the UK joining a European army. Its our continent – nobody else is going to defend it from Russia or even possibly America
And please spare us the sceptics about joining a European army. The British army/forces has been fighting in Europe as far back into history you want to go.
Seven Years War, War of Austrian Succession, WW1, WW2.
Available for the Cold War
A full on Common European Army is a ways away, but what needs to happen is a common European Command structure. 3* and 4* enablers, and a common force structure that everyone habitually slots into. It would be a good initial stepping stone, and would open the door to future intigration on things like procurement and doctrine, while still allowing nations to deploy in their own national interest seperate of the EU for now.