Jens Stoltenberg said that the military spending of the Alliance countries increased by 3.9% in 2020.
On Tuesday, at an online press conference, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, presenting his annual report on the organization’s work in 2020, said that Russia, terrorism, the rise of China and climate change are the main threats to NATO.
“Russia’s destabilizing behavior, terrorism, cyberattacks, technology, the rise of China and climate change are the challenges that remain. No country or continent can do it alone. Therefore, we need to work together in strategic solidarity”, – the NATO secretary general is quoted by TASS.
Stoltenberg said China and Russia are increasingly working together, including through military exercises, to shape future security challenges to NATO.
“All of this together defines the challenges for NATO in the future. And that is why it is important that NATO continues to adapt to the challenges of an authoritarian China and a more aggressive Russia”, – he added.
According to Stoltenberg, the military spending of all NATO countries grew by 3.9% in 2020, despite the negative impact of the pandemic on their economies.
“In 2020, we continued to invest in defense. Despite the damage caused to economies by the pandemic, this was the 6th year of the increase in spending, and it amounted to 3.9 percent”, – he said.