The NATO membership of Finland and Sweden is a bigger challenge for Russia than for NATO, concluded Admiral Rob Bauer, chairman of the NATO Military Committee, at a press conference.
TALLINN As future member states, Finland and Sweden are participating in the NATO Military Committee meeting for the first time.
The Military Committee is the highest level of NATO’s military decision-making. It includes the commanders of the armed forces of all 30 NATO countries.
– The joining of Finland and Sweden to NATO will strengthen both the security of the Baltic Sea region and the Baltic countries and the entire defense alliance.
This was stated by the chairman of the military committee on Saturday Rob Bauer and the Commander of the Estonian Defense Forces, Lieutenant General Martin Herem.
From NATO’s point of view, the two new member countries are a challenge, but they are a much bigger challenge for Russia.
– NATO gets more to defend, but also the defense capabilities of Finland and Sweden. Russia will get a thousand kilometers of anti-NATO border without additional capabilities, Admiral Bauer said at a press conference.
This time, the military committee did not yet set very specific steps to include Finland and Sweden in NATO’s defense plans. According to Rob Bauer, more detailed discussions about this will take place when all NATO countries have ratified the accession agreements.
The final confirmation of Finland’s and Sweden’s NATO membership is up to only a few countries. As of Saturday, Slovakia, Turkey and Hungary have not yet given their official approval.
The Ukrainian war was also on the agenda of the NATO military committee.
According to Rob Bauer, the war in Ukraine has changed modern warfare in many ways. As examples he mentioned Elon Musk’s Cooperation between the SpaceX company and the Ukrainian authorities in maintaining internet connections.
– The Ukrainians have also very creatively used weapon systems obtained from the West, for example by installing them on platforms where we ourselves are not used to using them, said Bauer.
He also praised the Ukrainians for the fact that the country’s army has abandoned the leadership culture from the Soviet era.
– From above, we just tell them what and where we want to achieve. In tactical implementation, decision-making power is given very low, even to the team level.
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