Pedro Sánchez: "Spain will lead the battle group in Slovakia, where we will deploy 700 soldiers"

Vilnius (Lithuania)

At a crucial moment for Euro-Atlantic security, Spain has conveyed a message of unity, stressing that cohesion is the allies' main asset.

To this effect, at the summit they have upped their deterrence and defence posture, in a clear message of determination towards Putin. In this context, the plans required by the Atlantic Alliance's military authorities to deal with any contingency have been approved. As president Sanchez pointed out, the command and control structure has also been renewed and will be complemented by offers from national headquarters. "This new structure adapted to the current situation must be able to make the transition from peace to crisis and conflict," he said.

The president stressed that Spain will continue to contribute to the allied effort until a just and lasting peace is achieved, without abandoning the spirit of commitment and solidarity with NATO's collective defence. In this context, and continuing the efforts made by Spain in numerous eastern flank countries in recent years, our country will substantially reinforce its presence in Romania and will lead the battle group in Slovakia, deploying its forces in this country for the first time.

Ukraine was also high on the agenda during the summit, with president Volodimir Zelenski taking part in the first meeting of the newly formed NATO-Ukraine Council. "We are living in uncertain times, overshadowed by the tragic events we see every day from Ukraine," the president lamented, recalling that security in Europe is under threat and that this has economic, energy and food consequences throughout the world.

In this context, an ambitious multi-year support plan has been approved to assist Ukraine in the development of its armed forces, which will help bring its military capabilities up to NATO standards.

Regarding Ukraine's aspiration to join the alliance, President Sánchez stressed that the allies affirmed in the summit's final communiqué that Ukraine's future undoubtedly lies in NATO, a statement that renews the 2008 Bucharest commitment. In this regard, the Atlantic Alliance will be in a position to extend an invitation to Ukraine to join NATO once an agreement is reached and all the necessary conditions are met.

In the margins of the summit, the G7 leaders also issued a joint statement formalising their support for Ukraine by adopting medium- and long-term security commitments to ensure that the country has the support of the signatories to develop its armed forces so that they are able to exercise self-defence and effective deterrence against Russia. This communiqué is open for signature by other allies, and Spain, as announced by the president after the summit, has decided to join this declaration.

The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, during his appearance at the press conference after the NATO Summit | Pool Moncloa/Fernando Calvo

The president emphasised that this summit was very useful for the further expansion of the alliance and collaboration with other partners. This was the first NATO Summit in which Finland took part as an ally, and Sweden's entry has also been unblocked, news that Pedro Sánchez described as "excellent", underlining that this "reinforces the message of unity and cohesion we want to convey".

The allies have been able to deepen the common working agenda with Indo-Pacific and EU partners. "We face common challenges and defend the same values and interests," the president stressed, recalling that there is a common goal based on defending the international order, underpinned by widely recognised norms. Spain therefore stressed that, with the Indo-Pacific partners, there is scope to strengthen our cooperation in areas such as cyber security, hybrid threats, innovation, maritime security and resilience.

Spain has also insisted at this summit on the need for NATO to pay attention to threats and opportunities coming from the South. In this regard, the NATO communiqué echoes the agreement among allies to produce a detailed report on threats and challenges posed from the southern flank, to be presented at the Washington Summit in 2024.

Non official translation