Category: Europe

NATO Assistant Secretary General for Innovation, Hybrid and Cyber, Jean-Charles Ellermann-Kingombe said: “Maintaining a technological edge – not least on emerging and disruptive technologies – is a key priority for NATO and a prerequisite if we are to remain in charge of our own security. Quantum is one of the technologies where we cannot take our leadership for granted. Where ensuring a technological edge will require not only substantial investments – but also mobilisation of resources and competences among all stakeholders, public and private across our Alliance and among our partners. This is what we are trying to achieve with this gathering, which is a model for engaging on emerging and disruptive technologies, including with our partners. Today’s conference set this work out on a promising and ambitious trajectory with a lot at stake.”

In 2023, NATO published its first-ever Quantum Technologies Strategy detailing its ambition to become “a quantum-ready alliance” and 22 Allies are currently part of NATO’s quantum community. This week’s conference sought to advance work including on topics such as scaling up of quantum technologies, partnership with industry and funding bodies, and understanding of dual-use cases of quantum technologies.  Since its establishment, multiple nations have committed resources to engage in this forum and lead work streams. Given the urgency to address opportunities and risks of quantum technologies, the rate of progress is of key importance to NATO, as is the evolving convergence of quantum with related domains such as AI and biotech. The Danish Chair also launched a new “Quantum Industry Network” to facilitate NATO’s broader engagement with quantum industry and funding leaders. 

Poland invests over 4 percent of GDP on defence, more than any other NATO Ally. “This sends a clear message not only to our adversaries, but also to the United States. That Europe understands it must do more to ensure our shared security.  And that starts with spending more and also fielding more capabilities,” Mr Rutte said.

Mr Rutte also commended Poland for hosting NATO forces, for its contributions to NATO missions in Kosovo and Iraq, and for its strong support for Ukraine. He noted that Poland has welcomed over a million Ukrainian refugees and committed 4 billion euros in military aid. Mr Rutte said that “Putin’s increasing reliance on Beijing, Pyongyang and Tehran shows that our security is not regional, it is global,” and welcomed Poland’s commitment to building stronger ties with NATO’s Indo-Pacific partners.

The Secretary General welcomed the official opening of the Aegis Ashore missile defence base in Redzikowo, Poland, describing it as “a testament to the strong commitment of both the United States and Poland to our collective defence.” 

In his video address, Mr Rutte highlighted the substantial progress that NATO and individual Allies have made since 2014 to strengthen resilience – an increasingly important task as societies across NATO are faced with growing challenges, whether from climate-related disasters or malign cyber activities. In a NATO context, resilience is the ability to prepare for, resist, respond to and quickly recover from shocks or disruptions and is a priority for Allies and partners alike. The Secretary General highlighted that resilience is not strictly military or civilian but “a whole-of-government and whole-of-society responsibility.” This is why Allies decided to integrate civilian planning into national and collective defence planning. And while this progress is important, Mr Rutte recognised that there is more work to do, emphasizing the “need to double-down on building a shared culture of resilience across the Euro-Atlantic” while building a NATO community involving public and private sectors, along with other international organisations, especially the European Union. “Together, we can better resist the growing pressure from those who seek to exploit our vulnerabilities,” the Secretary General concluded.

This year, the Symposium focused on promoting a proactive civil-military approach to resilience, in support of NATO’s defence plans and in line with commitments made by Allies at the 2024 Washington Summit.

Bringing together over 200 civil and military leaders, policymakers, practitioners and experts from Allied nations, partners, academia and industry, the annual NATO Resilience Symposium offers an opportunity to take stock of ongoing work and explore ideas to inform NATO’s resilience agenda.

The Secretary General will meet the President of Latvia, Mr Edgars Rinkēvičs, and the Prime Minister, Ms Evika Siliņa.

On the same day, Mr Rutte will visit the exercise Resolute Warrior of the  NATO Multinational Brigade in the Ādaži Military Base, where he will address the troops.

Media advisory

11:55 (CET)   Joint press conference by the Secretary General and the President of Latvia at the Ādaži Military Base.

Media coverage

The Secretary General’s press conference with the President will be streamed live on the NATO website, and broadcast live on EBU News Exchange.

Transcripts of the Secretary General’s remarks, as well as photographs, will be available on the NATO website. Video can be downloaded from the NATO Multimedia Portal after the event.

More information
For general queries: contact the NATO Press Office
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The Secretary General will meet the President, Mr Andrzej Duda, the Prime Minister, Mr Donald Tusk, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence, Mr Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Radosław Sikorski.

Media advisory

17:00 (CET)  Joint press conference by the Secretary General and the Prime Minister of Poland.

18:10 (CET)  Joint press conference by the Secretary General and the President of Poland.

Media coverage

The Secretary General’s joint press conferences will be streamed live on the NATO website, and broadcast live on EBU News Exchange.

Transcripts of the Secretary General’s remarks, as well as photographs, will be available on the NATO website. Video can be downloaded from the NATO Multimedia Portal after the event.

For more information:

For general queries: contact the NATO Press Office

Follow us on X: @NATO, @SecGenNATO and @NATOPress

During his first official visit to Paris since taking office, the Secretary General highlighted the importance of France’s high-end military capabilities and skilled armed forces for the collective security of the Alliance.

They discussed the need for increased defence investment and robust transatlantic cooperation to ensure the Alliance’s lasting security.

“The more we spend on defence, the more we reduce the risk of future conflict,” said Rutte.

Mr. Rutte and President Macron also discussed the need for more support for Ukraine ahead of what could be its harshest winter, as Russia relentlessly targets its energy infrastructure.

Mr Rutte commended France for training and equipping an entire Ukrainian brigade, the Anne of Kyiv Brigade, and for its pledge to send Mirage fighter jets early next year.

“France has delivered advanced artillery guns, air defence systems, cruise missiles, and armoured vehicles,” he said.

The Secretary General also raised concerns about deepening military ties between Russia, China, Iran and North Korea, which pose a threat to European security and global peace.

Prior to his meeting with the French President, the Secretary General visited the factory floor of the French defence industry company Thales Group. During the visit, Mr Rutte met with young talents and engineers developing cutting-edge capabilities for NATO Allies.

Media advisory

+/- 9:00 (CET)  Remarks by the Secretary General and the Secretary of State

Media coverage

• Media representatives who have annual accreditation to NATO can attend the event in person.
   
• Media representatives without annual accreditation, who have successfully been accredited for an event at HQ in 2024, and who are interested in covering the event should email NatoAccreditations@hq.nato.int. Please note that due to the short time to process applications, ad-hoc accreditation may not be guaranteed.
   
• The pool of media covering the event will meet in front of the Press Shop at NATO HQ at 8:30.
   
• The event will be streamed live on X @NATOPress and on the NATO website. A transcript of the Secretary General’s remarks, as well as photographs, will be on the NATO website.
   
• The video can be downloaded from the NATO Multimedia Portal after the event.

More information:
For general queries: contact the NATO Press Office
Follow us on X: @NATO, @SecGenNATO and @NATOPress