NATO’s Washington Summit: The Alliance Bracing for the Twilight Years
Ulf M Steindl: NATO’s Washington Summit: The Alliance Bracing for the Twilight Years. AIES Comment 2024/3.
15.07.2024
The 2024 NATO Summit in Washington marked the 75th anniversary of the Alliance, overshadowed by escalating great power rivalries and internal divisions. This summit was crucial in reaffirming NATO's core mission to counter Russian expansionism, highlighted by the ongoing aggression in Ukraine. Despite achieving a spending goal of 2% GDP by two-thirds of its members, the summit exposed underlying fragilities in NATO's unity. The Alliance faces a dual threat: external pressures from Russia, supported by North Korea, Iran, and China, and internal challenges of cohesion and adequate force readiness.
The inclusion of Finland and Sweden has bolstered NATO’s stance in the High North, underscoring the alliance’s commitment to securing new strategic frontiers. Support for Ukraine remains a critical and contentious topic. With the ongoing war, NATO's commitment to Ukraine's defence and future integration into the Alliance was reinforced, albeit without a formal invitation to join. The establishment of various support initiatives aims to solidify this support, regardless of potential shifts in the U.S. political landscape.
While the NATO Summit reinforced the Alliance's commitment to collective defence and adapting to new geopolitical realities, it also highlighted the urgent need for enhanced integration, capability development, and a unified strategic approach to address both current and emerging global threats.