/ world today news/ NATO is creating a Romanian-Bulgarian multinational brigade that will take care of the balance in Southeast Europe and the Black Sea region. This became clear from the words of NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
Balance of the southern flank
NATO has decided on a balanced expansion of its presence in the Black Sea region, he said. “Today we agreed on a balanced military presence in the Black Sea region and in the south-eastern part of the alliance at the expense of the creation of a Romanian-Bulgarian multinational brigade, which will become a base for comprehensive training of the multinational forces of the alliance,” said the Secretary General.
“NATO has already strengthened its presence in the Black Sea region and in the south-eastern part of the alliance. Air patrolling has also been intensified and measures have been taken to support Turkey, specifically, the deployment of NATO anti-missile defense elements and AUAKS radar aircraft there,” Stoltenberg was quoted as saying by the world media.
Reinforcement of the eastern flank
NATO leaders decided to send 4 battalions to the borders with Russia and confirmed their readiness to increase defense spending to 2% of GDP. The four NATO battalions will remain in Poland and the Baltics for as long as necessary, noted the secretary general of the alliance.
“It’s an open agreement. It will last as long as necessary. We don’t have any specific date when it will end,” he said, adding that earlier there was no such presence on the eastern flank. “This is a new reality for us,” Stoltenberg said.
The decision was made on the basis of military analysis after the events in Ukraine. Stoltenberg pointed out that no one in NATO had thought of such a thing before. “These are defensive actions, proportionate to the Russian ones,” he added.
Stoltenberg announced that NATO had decided which nations would lead the multinational battalions in Eastern Europe. Canada will be responsible for Latvia, Germany for Lithuania, Great Britain for Estonia, and the USA for Poland.
NATO will avoid incidents with Russia
He stressed that NATO should do everything to avoid misunderstandings and incidents with Russia. “Russia should not be isolated. In addition, in connection with the increase in military activity in Europe and near its borders, we are interested in harmonizing the rules of interaction with it. We will do everything necessary to avoid misunderstandings and incidents,” Stoltenberg said.
The secretary general of the alliance reminded that Russia is NATO’s biggest neighbor and plays an important role in the world. “We don’t want a confrontation. Strengthening deterrence and defense, we continue to seek constructive dialogue with Russia,” Stoltenberg said.
On July 13, during the meeting of the Russia-NATO Council, the alliance will inform Moscow about the results of the meeting in Warsaw. “The Russia-NATO Council is an important tool for managing our relations in this complex security environment. I will convene a new meeting of the Council next Wednesday to inform Russia of the decisions we have taken,” the Secretary General said.
Stoltenberg also announced that NATO’s anti-missile defense system is at a basic operational level of readiness.
Warsaw / Poland
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