NATO official says Ukraine war has strengthened EU–NATO ties

NATO’s Director General of the International Military Staff, Lieutenant General Remigijus Baltrėnas, took part in this year’s Berlin Security Conference, arguing that the war in Ukraine has drawn the European Union and NATO closer together in both policy and military adaptation.

Baltrėnas joined senior representatives from Norway, the United States and Finland for a panel titled “The Transatlantic Bond,” chaired by Dr Géza von Geyr of the German Federal Foreign Office.

In his remarks, he thanked Germany for its contribution to strengthening NATO’s military capabilities and outlined what he sees as the conditions for maintaining the transatlantic link. He said “the transatlantic bond will continue to be strong if the United States of America stays committed, European pillar in the NATO will become stronger, and defence industrial base of Europe will become bigger.” He added that full commitment to these elements, accompanied by timely innovation, would ensure NATO remains “the most successful Alliance in the world.”

Baltrėnas also highlighted efforts to incorporate lessons from Russia’s war against Ukraine into NATO planning and doctrine. He pointed to the Joint Analysis, Training and Education Centre in Poland, which works with Ukrainian counterparts to analyse battlefield experience and translate it into NATO strategy, policy and operational practice. He said “JATEC in Poland brings the real combat proven lessons, the knowledge and the experience from the war zone to the NATO tactical level,” noting that this learning process is mirrored at political and strategic levels through the NATO–Ukraine Council and the Joint Military Committee with Ukraine.

On the question of NATO–EU cooperation, Baltrėnas stressed regular coordination between NATO’s military staff and their EU counterparts. He said “cooperation between EU and NATO is deep and the war in Ukraine has brought both organizations even [closer] together. This cooperation is not about duplication of efforts, it is about complementarity of each other.”

The Berlin Security Conference, held annually since 2001, is one of Europe’s larger security and defence events, bringing together participants from European and non-European states, EU institutions and NATO. The 2025 conference took place at Vienna House Andel’s Berlin on 18–19 November.