There are words that do not spontaneously arise in the mouth of NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg when he talks about the future of the Alliance and the strengthening of transatlantic ties: those of "
European strategic autonomy.
".
"
There are different interpretations
" of the concept, he replied during a meeting with the press, before his intervention at the Munich security conference, which was held virtually on Friday.
It does not hide a certain skepticism about this objective defended by the President of the Republic Emmanuel Macron and relayed by other countries of the Union.
While welcoming “
all the efforts
” undertaken by the Europeans to invest in their defense capabilities or remedy the “
fragmentation
” of the European defense industry, the NATO Secretary General warns:
“The EU does not cannot protect Europe or replace NATO
”.
He insists on the geographic and political dimensions of Western defense.
The Alliance extends north to Iceland or Canada.
On the southern flank, Turkey is an essential ally, according to him, for the protection of allied interests.
He does not mention the tensions with Ankara, which wants to acquire Russian S400 missile defenses.
The arguments of Paris
Diplomat, Jens Stoltenberg rarely deviates from NATO's internal point of balance.
It also defends its institutional position.
While campaigning for closer transatlantic ties with new US President Joe Biden, he is worried about anything that could "
weaken solidarity
" between allies.
The European defense ambition should not "
be understood as an alternative or a weakening of NATO
", he said.
The French government keeps repeating that "
strategic autonomy
" is not intended to replace the Alliance but to strengthen it.
Obviously, the arguments do not bear.
In Paris, we hope to be able to convince and mainly the Biden administration.
The NATO Secretary General is also carrying out a perilous job of modernizing the organization.
While it is a question of drafting a new "
strategic concept
", the last one dating from 2010, Jens Stoltenberg launched several proposals for evolution which have not yet found unanimous support.
His method, considered “
iconoclastic
” internally, was not appreciated.
In particular, he wishes to reform the method of financing certain operations by allowing NATO to cover part of the costs.
Countries lacking military capabilities could thus share the burden better.
Within the Alliance, skeptics, including France, warn against a “
disincentive
” system that would push states to stop investing in their own capabilities.
The system could also disadvantage the major financial contributors to the Alliance, such as France, who would pay for others while continuing to finance their own interventions outside the framework of the alliance, such as, in particular, Operation Barkhane.