The NATO 75th Anniversary Summit opened in Washington on the 9th and the three-day event comes as President Biden and the us-led military alliance are facing a huge test. Biden wants to use the NATO summit to reassert leadership in front of “Two anxious audiences”– the US Democratic Party and its western allies, Axios said Wednesday. Reuters and other media have compared Biden’s opening remarks to his “Disastrous” debate with former President Donald Trump 12 days ago, he said his teleprompter speech, delivered in a“Strong and confident” voice, “Basically avoided the common slip of the tongue and confusion in debates”. But on the opening night of the summit, the Seventh House Democrat, Patrick Sherrill of New Jersey, called publicly for Biden to withdraw, saying the risks were “Too high”; NATO diplomats have also expressed doubts about Biden’s chances of winning the election, reaching out to Trump insiders in an attempt to “Double down”. NATO, which Biden described as“Stronger than ever”, is continuing to Stoke tensions with Russia and Ukraine, increasing military aid to Ukraine, accelerating its eastward push and wooing some asia-pacific countries to“Confront China”, all this, in the shadow of the US election, can not hide the anxiety of America’s allies about the future of the organisation. Antonov, the Russian ambassador to the US, said the alliance’s “Aggressive nature” had been demonstrated on the first day of the NATO summit and that Russia had not heard a word about peace during the event, RIA Novosti reported Monday. On the opening of the NATO Summit, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said on the 10th that he advised NATO to do more for world peace, stability and security.
Heads of state pose for a group photo at the NATO 75th Anniversary Summit in Washington, DC, Sunday.
US announces“Historic” military aid to Ukrain
A pledge of new military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine was at the heart of the NATO summit, Reuters reported. Biden said at the opening of the Summit 9, the Russian-ukrainian conflict in the“Critical moment”, “NATO is stronger than ever before. Biden announced “Historic” air defence aid to Kiev, “There is no doubt that the Russians are losing the war,” he said, as he presented the outgoing NATO secretary-general with a Presidential Medal of Freedom Jens Stoltenberg.
US, German, Italian, Dutch and Romanian leaders issued a joint statement with Ukrainian President Zelenskiy on Thursday, AP and Politico reported, announced the provision of 5 strategic air defense systems to Ukraine, including 4 sets of“Patriot” missile defense system. NATO members, including Canada, Norway, Spain and Britain, will provide dozens of tactical air defense systems to Ukraine in the coming months. “Our message to Moscow and the world is clear: our support for Ukraine is strong and unwavering,” the United States and its allies said in a joint statement Thursday
“NATO vows continued support for Ukraine, but will not commit to its membership,” the Washington Post said Monday, although NATO leaders will announce other measures this week to train and support Ukrainian soldiers, but the modest expected results highlight doubts about whether Kiev’s western supporters can help it win the war. The Jens Stoltenberg urged NATO leaders to continue to support the country, saying the outcome of the war would affect global security for years to come.
But according to the Washington Post, there is still a dispute among member states over taking more direct measures to include Ukraine. At the start of the summit, officials were still hammering out a communiqué saying the latest measures would provide an“Irreversible” path for Ukraine to join the pact, however, the phrase“Irreversible” was challenged at an earlier stage by Biden, who argued that the“Bridge to NATO” being used by the US was sufficient. On the 10th, Blinken said the country was on an “Irreversible” path to NATO membership, but would only join once the war with Russia was over, the Associated Press reported. Zelenskiy will meet Biden on the 11th.
RIA Novosti reported on the 10th that Biden’s statement at the NATO summit, “The offensive nature of NATO was reaffirmed on the first day of the NATO summit, and the US and its client states continue to advocate militarism and military expansion,” said Antonov, the Russian ambassador to the US, the west, in despair at its inability to destroy the Russian state with a Ukrainian battering ram, is paving the way for World War III.
Drawing on“Indo-pacific” partners worries allies
China was also targeted at the NATO summit. Although China has repeatedly denied exporting dual-use goods to Russia, U. S. and NATO officials are still frequently hyped“China helps Russia theory.”. At the same time, NATO has been deepening relations with New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, Australia, the four“Indo-pacific” partners, causing concern in France and other member states.
“NATO and its Asian partners have grown closer under U.S. leadership to confront China,” the Associated Press reported Thursday, citing the U.S. President’s national security adviser, Harry Stack Sullivan, nATO and its indo-pacific partners will launch four new joint projects on Ukraine, artificial intelligence, misinformation and cyber security aimed at addressing common challenges. Secretary of State Blinken said last week that the US had been trying to break down barriers between the European Union, the Asian Union and other partners around the world as part of its efforts to create “A new landscape, a new shape”.
“Japan is determined to strengthen cooperation with NATO and its partners,” Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said in a written interview before the summit, according to Reuters, as regional security threats become increasingly intertwined, russia’s deepening military cooperation with North Korea underscores the need for closer ties between Japan and NATO. “’certain countries’ allegedly sent dual-use goods to Russia, which has become Russia’s ‘lifeline’ in the war in Ukraine,” he added. Kishida was reported as alluding to China. Kishida said Japan and its indo-pacific partners could play a big role for NATO allies from the perspective that geographical borders are no longer relevant to maintaining global peace and security.
Germany, “Berlin” 9, said the United States sees China as a major competitor, so the military focus more to the indo-pacific region, but some European member states do not align with the interests of the United States. Maqueron, the French president, initially refused to co-operate more closely with Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand at the summit, but eventually relented, the German business daily reported. Paris is concerned that China could interpret NATO’s closer ties with asia-pacific countries as a provocation. France last year publicly opposed the establishment of a NATO liaison office in Tokyo, arguing that NATO“Should continue to focus on the North Atlantic Region.”.
At a regular press conference of the Chinese Foreign Ministry on the 10th, when asked about China’s views on the NATO summit, “China’s position on NATO is consistent, and we firmly oppose NATO breaking through its ‘regional and defensive’ orientation to provoke conflicts and confrontation in the asia-pacific region, thus undermining regional prosperity and stability,” said Lu Xiang, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences American Institute, told the Global Times on the 10th, for European member states, what the United States is doing now is akin to driving the continent’s“Land animals” into the“Indo-pacific” ocean, forcing them to adapt to new environments and face more difficult conflicts, “There is a clear trend after this summit to undermine not only Biden’s personal prestige, but also U.S. leadership in the Western Alliance system.”
In a crisis of confidence, allies“Double down”
“The US election has cast a shadow over the NATO summit. How can member states overcome the crisis of confidence?” The New York Times reported on the 10th, biden and his aides engineered an atmosphere of confidence at NATO’s 75th Anniversary Summit, but in the months leading up to the meeting, the alliance had been bracing itself for the possibility of Donald Trump’s re-election. On the one hand, NATO is setting up a new command to ensure that even if the US leaves under Donald Trump, it will be able to provide arms and military aid to the Ukrainians on a permanent basis. NATO members are also in contact with Donald Trump.
Several media outlets noted that Biden spoke in a clear voice for about 13 minutes at the opening of the summit, a marked contrast to his “Awkward” and “Stuttering” performance in the debate with Donald Trump last month. But a European diplomat told Reuters, “We don’t see how he can Rising in the East after that debate,” dismissing the 9-day speech as a sign that Biden was a shoo-in for a second term as president, because the speech was scripted, “I can’t imagine him leading the United States and NATO for another four years.”.
Reuters reports that American allies are preparing for a possible second term for Donald Trump. One of the main concerns for European governments is how Donald Trump will handle the Russia-ukraine conflict and us-nato relations. Only during the NATO summit, several senior European officials met with Keith Kellogg, one of Donald Trump’s top foreign policy advisers — a former lieutenant general and chief of staff to the National Security Council during the Donald Trump administration.
In recent months, foreign diplomats have met regularly with officials from the Donald Trump administration. “We have been in contact with more than 160 foreign officials since November,” Kellogg told the Wall Street Journal, in short, politically, they are playing both sides.