François Bausch, Luxembourg's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence;
Credit: MAEE / Directorate of Defence
On 17 and 18 February 2021, François Bausch, Luxembourg's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence, participated in the meeting of NATO Ministers of Defence via video conference.
Chaired by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, the ministerial meeting of Wednesday 17 February 2021 aimed to examine the latter's proposals following the “NATO 2030” forward-looking reflection process. The meeting also continued work on strengthening NATO's deterrence and defence system.
Minister François Bausch welcomed the many proposals made by the Secretary General within the framework of the “NATO 2030” forward-looking reflection process, including adapting the organisation to new geopolitical realities and strengthening its political dimension. In particular, he supported proposals relating to NATO's contribution to building the allies' resilience to future civil and military crises. He expressed support for the Secretary General's proposals to aspire to zero carbon emissions by 2050 as part of a “Transatlantic Climate and Security Pledge”.
As part of the discussions on strengthening NATO's deterrence and defence system, Luxembourg's Defence Minister highlighted the need to also include responses to new threats, such as hybrid threats, cyber defence and other emerging technologies.
The ministers then exchanged with Josep Borrell, High Representative of the European Union (EU) for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, and the Finnish and Swedish Defence Ministers on how to strengthen transatlantic ties and NATO-EU cooperation.
On Thursday 18 February 2021, the ministers discussed the future of NATO operations and missions, including the “Resolute Support Mission” in Afghanistan. Minister François Bausch spoke in favour of an approach based on the conditions of security and peace on the ground as opposed to an approach based on the calendar. He welcomed in his intervention the review by the new United States authorities of the conditions for a withdrawal of their troops.
