NATO Summit: Enhancing Ukraine’s Strengthening, Increasing Defense Spending and Welcoming Sweden as a Member

 Next week, NATO leaders will meet in Vilnius to discuss a range of issues related to the security of the alliance. The two-day summit will see the organisation pledge to help modernise Ukraine’s armed forces and create a high-level forum for consultations.

Leaders will also reaffirm Ukraine’s future membership of the alliance and work to welcome Sweden as the next member. US President Joe Biden and his counterparts will agree to boost defence spending to help Ukraine, 17 months into the war.

It is expected that the allies will pour weapons, ammunition and other support such as uniforms and medical equipment into the war-torn country. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg declared that, “For 500 days, Moscow has brought death and destruction to the heart of Europe, seeking to destroy Ukraine and divide NATO.At the summit, we will make Ukraine even stronger, and set out a vision for its future.”

To this end, the organisation will agree to a multi-year program of assistance to ensure full inter-operability between the Ukrainian armed forces and NATO, as well as the establishment of a NATO-Ukraine Council.

NATO first pledged that Ukraine would become a member one day in 2008, but those plans have not yet come to fruition. With this in mind, Stoltenberg said that the “most important thing now is to ensure that Ukraine prevails.”

The organisation is also encouraging the 31 allies to boost their military budgets, with a target of 2 per cent of GDP on defence by 2024. It is estimated that 11 of the allies will reach this goal in 2023. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said, “In 2023, there will be a real increase of 8.3 per cent across European Allies and Canada.This is the biggest increase in decades.” Sweden has been seeking NATO protection since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2014, abandoning a long history of military nonalignment.

However, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has objected to Sweden’s accession, and Hungary has also held up approval. NATO officials expect Hungary to follow suit once Turkey lifts its objections, as all 29 other allies, Stoltenberg and Sweden have all said the country has done enough to satisfy Turkey’s demands.

Erdogan accuses Sweden of being too lenient toward groups that Ankara says pose a security threat, including militant Kurdish groups and people associated with a 2016 coup attempt.

On Monday, Stoltenberg, Erdogan and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson will hold talks in Vilnius in an attempt to break the deadlock and allow Sweden to join the military alliance.