NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed the European Commissioner for the Internal Market, Thierry Breton, to the NATO Headquarters on Tuesday (13 February 2024). Mr Stoltenberg emphasised the importance of NATO-EU cooperation to address shared priorities, including boosting defence production and ensuring long-term support to Ukraine.
Commissioner Breton also briefed a meeting of the North Atlantic Council, chaired by Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoană. Mr Geoană underlined that NATO is implementing the Defence Production Action Plan, which leaders agreed in Vilnius, to accelerate joint procurement, boost production capacity and enhance interoperability. "Two years after the start of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, it is absolutely imperative, both for Ukraine and for Euro-Atlantic security that we increase our defence production and revitalise our defence industries," Mr Geoană said. He also added that since last July, the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) has agreed contracts for around 10 billion dollars, including for Patriot missiles and 155-milimetre ammunition. "Allies have a single set of forces. So we need to ensure a complementary approach on defence industrial issues, that respects NATO's competencies, for example in standard setting, and does not create barriers between Allies".
In January 2023, NATO and the EU signed a third joint declaration to further strengthen the partnership and address a broader range of issues, including growing geostrategic competition, resilience and the protection of critical infrastructure.
