BRUSSELS — Jens Stoltenberg, the NATO secretary general, said Tuesday at the start of this week’s defense ministerial that the group will continue its push to counter Russian aggression, but stressed that NATO is not looking for a fight.
“Our message is that NATO will continue to protect and defend all allies against any threats coming from any direction,” Stoltenberg said. “At this meeting and at the summit, we will make new decisions particularly related to forward presence of forces in the eastern part of the alliance.”
“At the same time … we don’t seek confrontation with Russia. We don’t want a new Cold War and we will continue to strive for a constructive and cooperative relationship with Russia,” he continued. “Especially with tensions as high as now, I think it’s important that we continue to keep the chance for political dialogue open.”
Stoltenberg announced on Monday ahead of the ministerial that NATO would deploy four multinational battalions to Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland as part of an increased presence to push back on Russia.
Defense Secretary Ash Carter told reporters on Monday that the U.S. would serve as the “framework nation” for one of the battalions. Germany and the United Kingdom have volunteered to do the same for two other battalions.
Identifying which country will lead the fourth battalion will be something that’s discussed over the next two days of meetings at the defense ministerial, but will likely be finalized at next month’s NATO summit in Warsaw, Carter said.
“We have committed to being a framework nation for one and we’re still conferring among ourselves and will with the allies how to source that,” he told reporters on the plane before landing in Brussels on Monday night.
Stoltenberg also previewed other priorities to be discussed during the two days of meetings in Brussels, including ways to strengthen cyber defenses, increase stability in Iraq, and provide more support the campaign against the Islamic State.
