NATO News

On 17 February 2021 EADRCC received a request for international assistance from Georgia in their fight to stop the spread of COVID-19.

NATO defence ministers met via secure teleconference on Wednesday (17 February 2021) to address key security issues. These include the adaptation of the Alliance through the NATO2030 initiative, progress towards fairer burden-sharing, and NATO’s enhanced deterrence and defence. Ministers also met in a separate session with NATO partners Finland, Sweden, and the European Union’s High Representative.

The NATO Secretary General Mr. Jens Stoltenberg will participate in the Munich Security Conference Special Edition (MSC), which is taking place online on Friday, 19 February 2021.

On February 17, Ukraine started receiving over 9000 litres of surface disinfectant from NATO’s Pandemic Response Stockpile. The donation was coordinated by NATO’s Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (EADRCC) and the Republic of Latvia to respond to Ukraine’s request for international assistance for COVID-19. The disinfectant will be distributed to the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine and its border guard detachments at border crossing points across the country.

MONS, Belgium – On 15 February NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe, General Tod Wolters, declared the NATO AGS RQ-4D remotely piloted aircraft initially operationally ready to conduct missions. This is a major milestone for the programme, which will substantially increase the Alliance’s awareness, indications and warnings of what is happening around its borders.

NATO defence ministers will meet via secure teleconference on Wednesday and Thursday (17-18 February 2021) to address NATO's missions in Afghanistan and Iraq, review progress toward fairer burden-sharing, and discuss the NATO 2030 initiative. Ministers will also meet with NATO partners Finland, Sweden, and the European Union to address shared security challenges.

Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg previewed this week's meeting of NATO Defence Ministers in a press conference on Monday (15 February 2021). The NATO 2030 initiative will be high on the agenda, with Mr. Stoltenberg to present ministers a set of proposals to begin preparations for this year's summit. Ministers will also address NATO's missions in Afghanistan and Iraq, review progress toward fairer burden-sharing, and meet with partners Finland, Sweden, and the European Union.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed the Belgian Minister of Defence Ludivine Dedonder to NATO Headquarters on Thursday (11 February), ahead of the next week’s meeting of the defence ministers that will take place by secure video conferencing. This was the first meeting between Mr. Stoltenberg and Ms. Dedonder.

On the occasion of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, discover how three young women are making great strides in technology and innovation, with support from the NATO Science for Peace and Security (SPS) Programme.

Civilian airlines can now use new south-west air routes in the lower airspace over Kosovo. This is an important achievement in the normalization of the lower airspace over Kosovo, which has been carried out with support through NATO’s Balkans Aviation Normalization process. It will help to significantly improve the civil air traffic routing to and from Pristina airport, with multiple benefits including faster travel, lower fuel consumption and reduced pollution.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal to NATO Headquarters on Tuesday (9 February 2021). The Secretary General thanked Ukraine for its important contributions to NATO missions and operations and stressed that the country’s status as an Enhanced Opportunities Partner will deepen NATO-Ukraine cooperation.

Today (8 February 2021), Slovakia delivered four pulmonary ventilators to North Macedonia in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The donation was coordinated by NATO’s Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (EADRCC) and Slovakia to respond to North Macedonia’s urgent requirement.

The Ukraine-NATO Interparliamentary Council (UNIC) reviewed Ukraine’s extensive partnership with NATO during exchanges with NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoana and deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine Olga Stefanishyna on Monday 8 February.

NATO has started its first focused maritime patrol of 2021 in the western Mediterranean. As part of NATO’s Sea Guardian operation, NATO ships will conduct routine counter-terrorism patrols and train with Allies and partners in the region. The ships will also hold a planned port visit in Tangiers, Morocco. Sea Guardian focused patrols are carried out six times a year in a designated geographic area of the Mediterranean. As part of the mandate, NATO vessels also interact with commercial ships to assess current maritime trends and share situational awareness.

On Thursday 11 February 2021, the NATO Secretary General, Mr. Jens Stoltenberg will meet with the Foreign Minister of North Macedonia, Mr. Bujar Osmani, at NATO Headquarters.

NATO’s Defence Education Enhancement Programme (DEEP) eAcademy recently offered students of the National Defence University of Ukraine a pioneering two-week programme focused on international security. The online course was shaped by NATO’s Counter-Terrorism Reference Curriculum (CTRC), which provides an overview of terrorist ideologies, motivations and methods, as well as contemporary counter-terrorism practices. The course helps participants develop the knowledge and skills needed to understand terrorism and counterterrorism in order to successfully anticipate and mitigate potential threats.

On Thursday 4 February 2021, NATO concluded its first policy hackathon. An expert jury as well as the live audience voted for the team from Freie Universität Berlin as the winner for their pitch on “Innovating innovation: next steps in Allied technology cooperation”.

On Thursday 4 February 2021, NATO’s Secretary General engaged with the NATO 2030 Young Leaders Group on their vision of the future of the transatlantic Alliance, one that “guards its strengths and values with the one hand and embraces change with the other”.