Speech

Thank you for that warm welcome, 

Your Majesty, Your Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, it is always a pleasure to be in beautiful Sweden, and it's an honour to speak with all of you today.

As I travelled through the really stunning landscape towards Sälen, I was reminded of what naturalist John Muir wrote: "The mountains are calling, and I must go."

So yesterday, for three hours, the mountains were calling, and we all managed to arrive. So thank you very much for giving me the pleasure and the privilege of my first engagement as NATO Deputy Secretary General, outside of NATO headquarters. 

It was important for me to be here today, as Sweden has really a vital role in safeguarding our shared security, and this region is of great importance for NATO. 

I will be traveling to Lithuania later this week, and I will also visit our troops stationed there. I want to discuss today how we can face the challenges of today and tomorrow together as Allies in NATO. 

NATO's strategic vision under new leadership might seem a daunting task for a new team, and it's true, Secretary General Mark Rutte has only been in office since October, and I am the latest new arrival, starting in first of December last year. So we are definitely a new leadership, but with a clear sense of purpose, direction and urgency. 

We know what NATO must do now, but we also know what NATO must do in the years ahead. The security situation around us and globally, is bleak. The world is more volatile and dangerous. There is again, war in Europe, and authoritarian powers are on march. 

As democracies, we must stand strong, and we must stand united and, and this is probably the most important, we must take action now.

As an Alliance, this means we ramp up defence spending and defence production to deal with an increasingly turbulent security environment. Russia is the most significant and direct threat to our security. Its onslaught in Ukraine continues, and when the war ends, we cannot turn back the clock to where we were before. 

Russia is preparing for long term confrontation with us. They say this openly, and they act accordingly. Just this year, Russia's total military spending will be 7 or 8 % of GDP, if not more. Russia's defence industry is scaling up, with the help of China, Iran and North Korea, together, they're aiming to destabilize the global order, to weaken Europe and North America and to undermine our freedoms. 

There is an ongoing campaign of hostile actions against different NATO Allies, and we have heard discussions about this before, including cyber-attacks, sabotage and disinformation. A recent example that got a lot of the attention yesterday in media was the incident over the holiday period in the Baltic Sea that damaged an undersea cable. 

NATO is taking swift action, building on our existing work to enhance the security of undersea cables and pipelines and also to monitor potential threats. Tomorrow, several leaders of the Baltic Sea NATO Allies, will gather to discuss further steps, including NATO's strengthened military presence in the region. 

Let me use this opportunity to welcome the Prime Minister's announcement yesterday for an important Swedish contribution in that endeavour, another proof that NATO today is bigger, stronger and more capable than we were just a few years ago, among other things, because Sweden and Finland have joined, and you are able to do these additional contributions. 

So we are ready to defend our citizens and our territory today, but we cannot guarantee that into the future unless we take action now. The Secretary General and I agree that Allies must shift to wartime mindset. We need to put our foot to the floor, ramp up defence production increase and accelerate defence spending so that we can continue to ensure that our people are safe. 

Sweden is making great strides. You already spend more than 2% of GDP on defence, and spending on your military will reach 2.6% points by 2028. You're building up your armed forces and investing in new equipment, and your concept of total defence, which involves the whole of society, is a model for us. 

And this is something you know, an area where old members can really learn from the members that have joined later. 

So really, congratulations on this. Sweden's defence industry is a world leader with dynamic companies producing a wide range of capabilities, I welcome the government's work with the private sector to increase the capacity and pace of innovation. 

Sweden continues to be an outstanding supporter of Ukraine, providing billions of euros in military assistance. The tanks, armoured vehicles, missiles and artillery you have given are helping Ukraine fight for its freedom. 

As an alliance, we must also step up that support, go further and go faster to get Ukraine through the dark days of this war, so that when they decide that peace talks start, they can do that from a position of strength. When the Swedish flag was raised last year at NATO's headquarters in Brussels, Prime Minister Kristersson said, "Sweden joining NATO is not at the end of something - It is a beginning." And it really is. 

Sweden is already reinforcing our collective security and your armed forces and high end capabilities will be essential to keep NATO's deterrence and defence credible now and in the years ahead.

Swedish jets are patrolling NATO skies. Your Navy is helping keep us secure at sea. Swedish troops will soon join NATO's multinational brigade in Latvia, and you have offered also to lead NATO's new forward land forces that will be established in Finland. 

Your membership of NATO is good for the stability in the high north, the Baltics and beyond. You know this, and I know this from my experience working for North Macedonia's succession to NATO several years ago, that the journey towards membership in the Alliance is not always straightforward. 

The journey can take longer than expected, at least in the case of North Macedonia, this was the case, and we know the challenges that you in Sweden have faced, but you have really managed to solve them, and now you are home. Every nation has the right to choose its own path, and we chose the path of freedom and democracy.

I know that Sweden has also long understood the threat from Russia and the importance of being part of NATO. The threat comes in different forms. It is present. 

We are aware and we are vigilant. We know that in NATO our nations are safer together than alone. When President Putin launched its full scale invasion of Ukraine almost three years ago, he wanted less NATO. Now he got more NATO. 

NATO membership is a huge responsibility for every Ally, whether a founding nation or our newest member. But in return, Sweden has gained the protection and solidarity of 31 other Allies who will defend your sovereignty and freedom. And in this way, Sweden is part of this NATO promise. If called on, you, will come to the aid of another, and they are ready to stand by you. 

The shield of Article Five is the ultimate guarantee of our security. So when joined, when Sweden joined NATO, it joined a community of values, democracy, freedom and the rule of law. And I see how Sweden reinforces this precious principles of NATO every day in NATO headquarters, but also throughout our Alliance in a world of complex threats that challenge our militaries and our societies, our security depends on remaining united and resilient. 

This is why I would like to use this opportunity to urge the Swedish people, the Swedish society, to stay engaged, informed and proactive in supporting your national defence and our collective security. For more than 75 years, NATO has existed to defend its nations, its people and its values, and Sweden is now part of this great transatlantic family, all for one and one for all, as they say. 

So you know that Sweden can always count on NATO, and I know and NATO knows that we can always count on you. Since you have joined the Alliance last year, you really have made the Alliance stronger, Sweden, safer, and all of our people more safe so thank you very much for this honour, and I look forward for to our discussions. 

Thank you.

Karin Hübinette:

Thank you so much. From the leadership perspective, what is needed to deal with the current security landscape changes? What would you say?

NATO Deputy Secretary General, Radmila Šekerinska:

Well, leadership has been very much the theme of your conference and your gatherings. I don't believe that crisis and peace time are too different when it comes to leadership challenges. I actually believe that if we apply the same leadership principles in peace time, we will be better prepared when the crisis hits. But in crisis, all these things become more visible and they become more important. But I think that the same rules apply. Good leadership, especially in times like this, requires that we listen well, but also that we talk openly and honestly among friends and Allies. Because we might share on certain issues, different views, but we have shown that when we agree, the agreement is more solid. So the first thing is this, being able to understand each other and go beyond some of the petty and some of the more important, also national interest for the greater good. The second is actually even more important. Once we talk and once we discuss, we have to be really prepared to decide and act with solidarity, unity and speed. Because when you act, you act not only in dealing with your imminent challenges, but also in preparation to future challenges. And this is what NATO is good about. You know, for seeing what comes ahead of us. For seeing what are the challenges of our security, not only for today and next month, but really years ahead. And the third and final comment, of course, is something that is close to my heart and probably felt by many people in the audience. You know, leadership is about sometimes taking the road less travelled and taking difficult, sometimes not really popular, decisions for the greater good and for future challenges. And let me share my personal experience, because I have assisted very much North Macedonia's path to NATO. We have tried to become a NATO member for 30 years, and the process was delayed. And one of the problems was, of course, a problem with one of our neighbours that looked insurmountable. So if everyone could have bet, probably the bet would have been against our membership. And it took not only a lot of discussions, a lot of soul searching, but also a lot of courage to actually say what looks unsurmountable and impossible is feasible if you are prepared to do the right thing for your country. So I do believe that leadership is about doing the right thing for your people and your country, even when it means that sometimes you personally pay a political price. After the agreement that North Macedonia and Greece concluded, it was a game changer for North Macedonia, it was, I think, big success, also for Greece. It improved the Alliance and improved the stability of the region, and we did it before, actually the big security earthquake shook Europe. So leadership is also about timing, and this is why it's complicated.