Source: NATO
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte visited Toulouse, France, today (1 July 2025), engaging with Airbus leaders to strengthen ties with the defence industry. Speaking at the Airbus Top Executive Forum, Mr Rutte emphasized the shared goal of ensuring security and prosperity across all NATO nations. “We share the same objective: to ensure the prosperity and security of our economies and societies – across Europe and North America,” he said, stressing the critical need for NATO and industry to work together in a rapidly changing security landscape.
The Secretary General, welcomed by Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury, addressed the urgent need for enhanced defence capabilities amid growing global threats. “There is no strong defence without a strong defence industry,” he stated, praising Airbus for contributions like the A400M aircraft and the MRTT [in full]. One week after the agreement on a 5% GDP defence spending target reached by Allies at NATO’s Summit in The Hague, he urged the industry to innovate and scale up production to meet NATO’s ambitious capability targets and keep our one billion people safe.
Following his address, Secretary General Rutte held a bilateral meeting with CEO Mr Faury and his team, and visited the A321 Final Assembly Line, interacting with Airbus employees. The visit underscores NATO’s commitment to fostering transatlantic industrial cooperation to deliver critical capabilities for the years to come.