The Chair of the Military Committee marked the 813th day of Russia’s large-scale invasion in Ukraine. Admiral Bauer emphasised the urgency of continued Allied support to Ukraine. Alluding to the greater geostrategic impact of the war against Ukraine, Admiral Rob Bauer added: “The world is on a historical crossroads, not only between democracy and autocracy. This is very much also about impunity versus accountability.”
Admiral Bauer concluded his remarks in stating that the success of Exercise Steadfast Defender demonstrates that: “NATO is stronger and readier than it has ever been. And it’s growing stronger by the day. We have it within ourselves to build on the ground-breaking work that has already been done. The integration of NATO and national military planning will enable us to do exactly what the NATO flag symbolises: all Allies will follow the same compass.”
General Philippe Lavigne, Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, briefed the Chiefs of Defence on warfighting transformation, the implementation of the Multi-Domain Operations Concept, the Warfare Development Agenda, the adaptation of NATO’s Command and Control and the NATO Defence Planning Process.
The Chief of Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Major General Anatoliy Barhylevych, briefed the NATO Chiefs of Defence on the situation on the ground. The Chiefs of Defence reaffirmed their firm and continued support to Ukraine, emphasising the bravery and sacrifice of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
General Chris Cavoli, Supreme Allied Commander Europe, brief on the executability of the Deterrence and Defence of the Euro-Atlantic Area Family of Plans and the way ahead regarding NATO’s deterrence and defence posture. Allies are actively working on making the new defence plans fully executable. Enablement, integrated air and missile defence and defence industrial capacity were also discussed.