Geopolitical challenges are too great to be addressed individually - Braze at NATO foreign ministers' meeting

RIGA - Regardless of distance, we are in the same boat, and geopolitical challenges are too great to be addressed individually, Foreign Minister Baiba Braze (New Unity) said at a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels on Friday.

Increasing the Alliance's collective defense capabilities, support for Ukraine and constraining Russia, cooperation with partners from the Indo-Pacific, preparations for the NATO summit in the Hague were key topics addressed at the meeting.

"The new members of the Alliance, Finland and Sweden, are fully integrated, NATO's defense and deterrence capabilities have been considerably increased over the past decade, we have strengthened cooperation with our partners in the Indo-Pacific region - regardless of distance, we are in the same boat, and geopolitical challenges are too great to be addressed individually," Braze emphasized.

The U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has pledged an unshakeable U.S. commitment to NATO, nevertheless, the requirement for Europe to invest more and faster into its own security and defense remains unchanged so that we are able to deter the aggressor and defend every centimeter of the Alliance's territory.

The fulfilment of the NATO defense plans requires at least 3.5 percent of gross domestic product of the individual members of the Alliance, this being in the collective security interests of us all, the minister underlined.

She emphasized that Latvia takes its security and defense very seriously: for 2025, it has allocated the largest defense budget in the country's history - more than EUR 1.5 billion, or 3.66 percent of GDP - and has taken a decision to increase the amount to 5 percent.

Braze also highlighted Latvia's important "homework" - over the next five years Latvia intends to invest EUR 303 million in the strengthening of its eastern border, which is also the external border of NATO and the EU. In 2025, EUR 45 million will be channeled into military reinforcement of Latvia's eastern border of Latvia in addition to EUR 25 million invested in 2024.

At the NATO-Ukraine Council, Braze said that the only country we do not see as interested in achieving peace is Russia. "We are all of one mind that Russia is, and remains the most significant long-term threat to the entire Alliance. We are currently under no direct military threat," Braze underlined at the meeting.

NATO foreign ministers exchanged views with the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, on the EU's White Paper for European Defense and the ReArm Europe plan, as well as the opportunities for cooperation between NATO and the EU to advance the development of the European defense industry and military capabilities of NATO's European members.

The ministers engaged in a discussion with partners from the Euro-Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific regions on security challenges they face and on the need for NATO to work closer with Australia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and New Zealand to share experience in combating various threats of unconventional warfare. The ministers thanked the Indo-Pacific countries for support they are providing to Ukraine.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte pointed out that the summit in The Hague on June 24 and 25 will start a new chapter, as the Alliance must be built stronger, fairer and more lethal, so as to guarantee our future shared security. He also stressed that Allies are aligned in support of Ukraine and that in the first three months of 2025, the Alliance has pledged more than EUR 20 billion in security assistance for Ukraine.