“This Moment Can Define Our Children’s Future.” The Appeal Made by the Foreign Ministers of Germany, France and Poland on the 75th Anniversary of the Founding of NATO

“75 years ago, NATO’s founding treaty was signed in Washington to ensure the security of our territory, the safety of our citizens and the preservation of our shared values: individual freedom, human rights, democracy and the rule of law,” the three officials note .

Those values ​​are being tested today, they say, adding that during the more than two years of war in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin “has made it clear (…) time and time again, turning his back on decades of cooperative approaches, that his imperial ambition it extends far beyond Ukraine – that what it is attacking is the European peace order itself”.

Therefore, as we celebrate NATO’s anniversary, we must not be complacent. On the contrary, we must live up to the fact that this moment can define the future in which our children will live.

Annalena Baerbock, Stéphane Séjourné and Radosław Sikorski:

“Russia will not stop its aggressive and imperialist policy in the near future”

Recalling that over the past two years, Europe and North America have remained “united and steadfast” in the face of Russian aggression and supported Ukraine’s self-defense, the heads of diplomacy of the three countries promise that their support “will continue as long as necessary and as intensively as necessary”.

Support for Ukraine means support for their own freedom and security, they say.

“We must make no mistake: today, Ukraine is under attack – tomorrow, it may be another part of Europe. And Russia will not stop its aggressive and imperialist policy in the near future”, say the signatories of the opinion article.

In this context, Baerbock, Séjourné and Sikorski recall NATO’s founding principle that “an attack against one of us is considered an attack against all” and promise that “together, we will defend every inch of NATO territory and be united against any future Russian aggressions”.

The three ministers also say that Vladimir Putin has promoted “lies and false narratives to justify his war”, one of which is that “NATO is a threat to Russia”.

“But the opposite is true: today, nations are rejoining NATO because they feel threatened by Russia,” they point out, recalling that Finland and Sweden, known for their policy of neutrality, decided to join NATO following the invasion triggered by Russia in Ukraine.

For Europe to be at peace, Russian imperialism must be stopped. We cannot allow the existence of “grey areas”, because Putin sees them as an invitation to undermine territorial integrity and sovereignty, to draw imaginary lines on the map and, ultimately, to use military force.

Annalena Baerbock, Stéphane Séjourné and Radosław Sikorski:

Ministers from the three NATO member states also warn that “a policy of concessions to Russia, in the hope that it could bring back peace or stability to the continent, is naive”, which, they say, was proven by the invasion of Ukraine.

“European allies should shoulder their fair share of NATO’s collective burden and demonstrate their willingness to take on more responsibility for Europe’s defense,” the officials continued, talking about addressing some of the “most pressing deficiencies” – force training, production capacity, logistics, standardization and interoperability.

Three measures for the common security of the Allies

Thus, in order to assume responsibility for collective defense, they propose the following three measures:

• “Firstly, spending at least 2% of GDP on defense is a necessary precondition and is the very foundation on which we build our collective defence,” alongside ensuring that funds are spent strategically “above all, for the development the forces and capabilities we need for collective defense”.
• “Secondly, we must use the full industrial potential of our continent to modernize our military capabilities, accelerate production and achieve economies of scale.”
• “Third, we need to invest in future technologies to maintain our technological edge and close capability gaps. Our innovation efforts will help NATO maintain its technological edge over potential adversaries and strengthen its deterrence and defense capabilities.”

Saying that Vladimir Putin aims to “test our unity and resolve as allies”, the officials say that “we must ensure that his aggression does not bear fruit – now and in the future”, and, they conclude, “as Europeans , we are ready to do our part”.

Photo: Profimedia

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