The NATO Summit should send a message that the Alliance remains with Ukraine - Nauseda
Kyiv • UNN
The NATO Summit should send a clear signal of support for Ukraine and renew commitments to collective defense. Lithuania will increase defense spending to 5% of GDP in 2026.
The NATO summit in The Hague should send a clear message that the Alliance remains with Ukraine. Also, among the expectations from the summit is the renewal of commitments to collective defense and readiness to defend allied territory. This was stated by Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda during a press conference at the summit in Vilnius, reports UNN.
Today's meeting highlights the growing pressure on NATO's eastern and northeastern flanks and our collective efforts to address them. In the face of the Russian threat, we must unite our efforts in the High North, the Baltic Sea and the Black Sea. Today, during the first session, we discussed thorough preparations for the upcoming NATO summit. Our meeting in The Hague will present a good opportunity to continue building a stronger and better prepared Alliance along the lines defined in Madrid, Vilnius and Washington
The President of Lithuania spoke about expectations from the summit in The Hague.
At the summit in The Hague, we expect a message of transatlantic unity, a renewal of commitments to collective defense and a readiness to defend allied territory. We also believe that allies will be ready to significantly increase defense investments - Nausėda noted.
He stated that Lithuania will spend more than 5% of its GDP on defense in 2026.
As we move towards the goal of achieving at least 5% of GDP on defense and investment in the military-industrial complex, we expect the entire alliance to follow our example. Lithuania will spend 4% of its GDP on defense this year and more than 5% next year. Additional funds will be needed for the national heavy division, as well as for the infrastructure of the German brigade and for supporting the host nation to allied troops stationed in Lithuania
He emphasized that the summit in The Hague should also send a clear message that NATO remains with Ukraine.
We must show that NATO remains with Ukraine through continued support for its Armed Forces and support for Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic aspirations. In the coming months, a key goal will be to meaningfully increase military support to Ukraine, ensure deterrence on the ground and prepare the conditions for future peace negotiations. Ukraine's strength must be significantly strengthened and now it depends primarily on Europeans
Addition
Zelensky stated that if Ukraine is not present at the NATO summit, which will be held in The Hague in June, it will be a victory for Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, but not over Ukraine, but over the Alliance.
As the media reported, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte wants the annual Alliance summit, which will be held in June, to be short and take place in a friendly atmosphere. Rutte hopes that it will be possible to avoid division between its members against the background of the complex relationship between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky.
Also, the media reported that the NATO summit, which will be held in The Hague in June, will take place according to a shortened program - two days instead of three. This year's text of the final declaration may not contain any direct mention of Russia and possibly even of Ukraine, which makes the Hague meeting very different from recent summits, and it is still unknown whether Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will be invited.
