SACEUR on The New NATO
Allied Forces conduct helicopter repel demonstrations during Exercise EFES
The crisis in Ukraine has highlighted that our current approach to readiness does not necessarily translate into responsiveness . We will need to evolve certain aspects of the Alliance in order to become more adaptive and responsive to future challenges .
Our immediate assurance measures – for example , sending additional aircraft to enhance Air Policing over the Baltic States or by providing Patriot missiles in Turkey- contribute to the Alliance ’ s coherent strategic approach to reassurance and deterrence .
These assurance measures are meaningful , incremental , and flexible with strategic depth , breadth and clear purpose . They are proportional to the general threat situation and are fundamental to maintaining a sustainable strategic effect for the Alliance .
One of the key decisions made at the NATO Summit was to implement a spearhead force that we are calling the Very High Readiness Joint Task Force , or VJTF .
The VJTF is one part of a series of adaptation measures approved by Heads of State that will enable the Alliance to address the threats against our NATO allies and the diverse challenges to Alliance security from all directions , including from the south .
Continuous Air , Land , and Sea presence and meaningful military activity are required to provide the necessary assurance , demonstrate Alliance resolve , and the defensive nature of the Alliance .
We can anticipate that our assurance measures will not go unchallenged . We can expect reaction and counter-measures intended to reduce the effect of our actions and apply pressure to test the cohesion of the Alliance .
Beyond the situation in Ukraine , there are many security challenges that
SACEUR , Gen . Breedlove and SECGEN , Jens Stoltenberg greeting NATO military leaders face us today . The activity in Iraq and Syria by extremists calling themselves the Islamic State represents one of the biggest threats right now . We also need to consider threats to our Southern flank , PATRIOT deployments to Turkey , ongoing operations in Afghanistan and Kosovo , Cyber security challenges , and other potential actions that will continue to require our attention . NATO must be able to do multiple operations simultaneously and we must plan to respond appropriately to all of these as we move forward .
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