NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has urged the alliance’s national armaments chiefs to speed up delivery of the military capabilities NATO says it needs for deterrence and defence.
Speaking at NATO Headquarters in Brussels during the Committee of National Armaments Directors (CNAD) Autumn Plenary Session on 29 October, Rutte called on members to “turn commitments into contracts”, strengthen cooperation with industry, and ensure increased defence investment translates into military strength, the alliance press service informed.
“NATO is stronger when we develop, produce and equip our forces together,” Rutte declared.
National Armaments Directors also discussed accelerating defence production, improving procurement and acquisition, and strengthening industrial preparedness, building on decisions taken at NATO’s summit in Ankara.
What the CNAD does
The meeting also covered “deep precision strike capabilities” and how to optimise the committee’s work to deliver results.
The CNAD, established in 1966, is designed to help NATO allies cooperate on equipping their armed forces and translating military requirements into interoperable capabilities — systems that can work together across different countries’ forces.
Rutte, who chairs the CNAD, marked the committee’s 60th anniversary by calling for “a higher level of ambition for what the CNAD must achieve next.”
