The arrival of Marco Rubio (US Secretary of State) is a feather in the cap for the Swedish government, says Magnus Christiansson, researcher at the Swedish National Defense University (FHS).
According to Secretary General Mark Rutte, the meeting held in Helsingborg will be dominated by three central issues: increased defense investments, scaling up defense industry production, and continued support for Ukraine.
The Ukraine issue is absolutely central and it will be symbolically important. We already know there are dividing lines within NATO and that the US is more withdrawn. Then we also have a new government in Hungary, which may open things up a bit, says Rikard Bengtsson, associate professor of political science at Lund University.
Lack of consensus
He also highlights the decision at the NATO summit in The Hague last year as a challenge: that defense spending should be increased to 5 percent of GDP by 2035. The distribution is that 3.5 percent should cover pure military spending, while 1.5 percent should go to defense-related investments.
According to Bengtsson, the willingness to invest differs, and there is also no consensus when it comes to what is included in defense-related investments.
It could be infrastructure, but it could also be healthcare and so on. It is no coincidence that they could not make it concrete in The Hague. It reflects that the countries have slightly different priorities, he says.
"This meeting can probably still drive development forward," he says of the foreign ministers' meeting, which is seen as an important part of the preparations for the NATO summit in Turkey in July.
Pressed position
However, this comes amid an already tense situation for NATO. At the beginning of the year, US President Donald Trump threatened tariffs against countries that opposed a U.S. purchase of Greenland.
He has also threatened to stop all trade with Spain after the country refused to support US attacks on Iran, and as recently as this week, the Pentagon said the number of US soldiers in Europe has been reduced.
The overall goal of the meeting is therefore to avoid further cracks before the curtain is opened, says Kjell Engelbrekt at the Swedish National Defense University. He assesses the conditions as "fairly good" now that it is clear that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will participate.
It is important for European countries to stick together for this to work, but also to be able to show a united front with the United States, he says.
NATO foreign ministers are gathering in Helsingborg this week for a two-day meeting.
On Thursday evening, an informal dinner will be held with Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrij Sybiha as a special guest and will include King Carl Gustaf, Queen Silvia and Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson (M).
On Friday, the formal meeting with the foreign ministers of the 32 member states will begin at 10 am. A closing press conference with Secretary General Mark Rutte will be held at 1:45 pm.
Source: NATO
