Category Archives: Nato

Nato appears to shelve plans to open Japan liaison office in Tokyo

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Progress expected at Nato summit thanks to attendance of Japan’s PM but no mention made in latest talks

Nato appears to have shelved plans to open a liaison office in Tokyo, a proposal that had been discussed as part of the western military alliance’s plans to deepen cooperation with partners in the Asia-Pacific but which was strongly opposed by China.

The idea to open an office was first discussed after Nato’s secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, visited Japan earlier this year. It reportedly involved opening a civilian office in Tokyo in 2024, as a means of facilitating Nato’s dialogues in the Asia-Pacific. It was expected progress would be made at the Nato summit thanks to the attendance of Fumio Kishida, Japan’s prime minister, for the second year in a row.

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Zelenskiy fails in effort to secure invitation to join Nato at Vilnius summit

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Leaders of military alliance sign off on declaration that does not give Ukraine firm membership timetable

Volodymyr Zelenskiy has failed in a last-ditch effort to secure an invitation for Ukraine to join Nato after leaders of the 31 countries signed off on a declaration that did not give a firm timetable or clear conditions for its eventual membership.

The frustrated Ukrainian president had accused Joe Biden and other leaders present at a summit in the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, of showing disrespect and complained that there was “no readiness” to invite his country to join.

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Australian PM hands Sunak picture of Bairstow stumping at Nato meeting

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Anthony Albanese tries to ambush UK counterpart, but Sunak was ready with image of England team at Headingley

The Australian prime minister tried to ambush his British counterpart at the Nato summit with a picture of the controversial stumping of England wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow in the Ashes cricket series.

Rishi Sunak was unexpectedly prepared, and produced from his official portfolio his own photo of England’s Mark Wood and Chris Woakes celebrating getting the winning runs at Headingley on Sunday, giving the host nation their first victory after two consecutive Australian wins.

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No clear pathway expected for Ukraine Nato bid amid German and US caution

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Ukraine looks likely to be offered closer integration rather than clear pre-conditions as war with Russia continues

Nato members are not expected to set clear pre-conditions for Ukraine’s eventual membership to the military alliance in the face of caution from the US and Germany while the war with Russia continues.

Ukraine wants clarity on when and how it can join the alliance after the war with Russia ends, believing that western military protection is the only way it can remain unthreatened by its neighbour. However, it looks instead likely to be offered closer integration with Nato and a stronger political declaration in favour of its membership in principle.

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Turkey agrees to support Sweden’s Nato application

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Recep Tayyip Erdoğan agreed to set aside his veto following last-ditch talks on the eve of the Nato summit in Vilnius, Lithuania

Sweden is to be allowed to join Nato after Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, agreed to set aside his veto and recommend to his parliament that Sweden’s application go ahead.

The Monday night breakthrough came in last-ditch talks on the eve of the Nato summit in Vilnius, Lithuania.

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Why Asia matters to Nato as it looks to respond to China’s military expansion

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Beijing is source of ‘systemic challenges’ but alliance members are divided on how to engage

Nato leaders and their allies are heading to Vilnius, Lithuania, this week, for two days of meetings starting on Tuesday. Among them is Yoon Suk Yeol, South Korea’s president, who will give one of the opening speeches.

The summit will be dominated by discussions about the alliance’s relationship with Ukraine. But Yoon’s attendance reflects a growing interest among members in stepping up their dialogue with countries in the Asia-Pacific.

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Downing Street plays down reports of UK-US split over Ukraine Nato membership after Sunak-Biden meeting – UK politics live

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No 10 spokesperson says UK ‘certainly’ wants to support Ukraine on the pathway to joining Nato after reports of rift

Joe Biden has arrived at Downing Street for his first time as president ahead of tomorrow’s Nato summit in Lithuania.

After stepping out of US presidential vehicle “the Beast”, he shared a warm handshake with Rishi Sunak on the doorstep and smiled to press before disappearing behind the door to Number 10.

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Russia-Ukraine war live: Nato chief ‘absolutely certain’ summit will have ‘unity and a strong message’ on Ukraine membership

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General secretary Jens Stoltenberg comments made at press conference in Vilnius ahead of Nato summit

Russia’s ministry of defence has published an image of Valery Gerasimov for the first time since the failed Wagner uprising of 24 June. Gerasimov was one of the military leaders that Yevgeney Prigozhin had been railing against for weeks before ordering his mercenaries to march on Moscow.

In a video clip posted to the ministry’s official social media channels, Gerasimov is seen receiving reports about claimed attempts by Ukrainian forces to strike targets in Crimea, Rostov and other regions.

This is Martin Belam taking over the live blog in London. You can contact me at martin.belam@theguardian.com.

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US could agree to sell Turkey F-16 jets so it will allow Sweden to join Nato

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Erdoğan throws another obstacle in way of agreement by insisting Turkish EU membership be back on table

Joe Biden will try to nail down a four-country deal that would lead to Turkey allowing Sweden into Nato in return for the sale of US F-16 jets to Ankara, on the condition they are not used to threaten Greece.

But Recep Tayyip Erdoğan threw a surprise obstacle in the way of Biden’s plan by announcing he wanted Turkey’s stalled application to join the EU to be included in the package. Speaking at the airport before departing for the Nato summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, the Turkish president said: “First, let’s pave the way for Turkey in the European Union, and then we will pave the way for Sweden just as we did for Finland.”

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Anthony Albanese announces $1bn defence deal with Germany before Nato talks

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Berlin to buy 100 Boxer heavy weapon carriers made in Brisbane by German manufacturer Rheinmetall

The prime minister has touched down in Europe, confirming a deal worth more than $1bn to sell Australian-made armoured vehicles to Germany before talks at a Nato summit.

Anthony Albanese landed in Berlin on Sunday night, German time, before a scheduled meeting with Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Monday.

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Ukraine pessimistic about joining Nato ahead of Vilnius summit

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The US and Germany are unwilling to support Ukraine’s membership while the conflict with Russia is ongoing

Ukraine is increasingly pessimistic about taking a significant step forward in joining Nato as leaders of the western military alliance are set to assemble on Tuesday in the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius.

Kyiv is expected to be offered a package of last-minute “enabling security guarantees” at the two day summit – an assurance from countries such as the US, UK, France and Germany that military aid and training will continue in the long term.

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Sunak needs all his persuasive powers to sway Biden on Ukraine’s Nato membership

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Meeting between US president and UK PM carries more significance than previous visits in light of recent disagreements

Joe Biden’s meeting in Downing Street on Monday with Rishi Sunak – their fifth in the past five months and the sixth since Sunak become prime minister – probably carries more significance than any other.

Never mind that it is essentially a stopover on the way to the Nato summit in Vilnius and being squeezed between tea with King Charles at Windsor Castle and a speech on climate finance.

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Joe Biden to meet Rishi Sunak at No 10 before Nato summit

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Meeting partially overshadowed by US president’s decision to send to Ukraine cluster munitions banned in Britain

Joe Biden will meet King Charles for the first time since the coronation, in a fleeting UK visit that will be used by Rishi Sunak and the US president as a “pre-meeting” ahead of joint efforts at this week’s Nato summit.

However, what will be the sixth meeting between Biden and Sunak since Sunak took office in October has been partly overshadowed by the US president’s decision to send cluster munitions to Ukraine, weapons that are prohibited by 100 countries including the UK, which currently holds the presidency of a convention banning them.

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Biden heads to Europe amid questions over cluster munitions and Nato unity

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US leader’s three-country tour aims to ‘showcase the president’s leadership on the world stage’ at a key time for the war in Ukraine

Joe Biden heads to Europe on Sunday for a swift tour dominated by the war in Ukraine, with membership of the expanding Nato military alliance and the US approval of cluster munitions likely to be key talking points. His national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said the trip would “showcase the president’s leadership on the world stage”.

The US president will arrive at night in London, ahead of meetings with the British prime minister, Rishi Sunak, and King Charles, and then head to a key Nato summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, before travelling to Helsinki to welcome Nato’s newest member, Finland.

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Volodymyr Zelenskiy discusses peace plan, Nato and grain deal with Erdoğan in Turkey – as it happened

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Ukraine president meets with Turkish leader after summits across Europe

In his daily operational briefing, Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of the Belgorod region in Russia, has said that one man was killed by Ukrainian shelling in the last 24 hours. He also recorded damage in a number of settlements caused by falling debris after air defence had been in action.

Belgorod borders Sumy, Kharkiv and the occupied Luhansk region in Ukraine’s north-east. The claims have not been independently verified.

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Biden ratchets up efforts to secure Sweden’s Nato membership ahead of key summit

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Work to persuade Turkey to drop its objections continues, as president meets with Sweden’s prime minister at White House

US President Joe Biden has told prime minister Ulf Kristersson of Sweden that he is “looking forward” to the country’s stalled Nato membership bid winning final approval, amid doubts that Turkey will withdraw its opposition in time for a major summit next week.

Speaking in the Oval Office on Wednesday, Biden said he wanted to reiterate that he “fully, fully supports Sweden’s membership in Nato” and was “anxiously looking forward” to the bid being ratified.

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Iraq protesters breach Sweden’s embassy over Qur’an burning

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Followers of Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr enter mission’s compound to denounce incident outside Stockholm mosque

Iraqi protesters have breached Sweden’s embassy in Baghdad, angered by a Qur’an burning outside a Stockholm mosque that sparked condemnation across the Muslim world.

A crowd of supporters of firebrand Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr stayed inside the compound for about 15 minutes, then left as security forces deployed, an AFP photographer said.

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Ukraine defence minister expects Nato guarantee for after war

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Exclusive: Oleksii Reznikov says entry to alliance non-negotiable and pledges need to be made now

Ukraine’s defence minister has raised the stakes before the next Nato summit, saying he expects a guarantee that his country will be invited to join the military alliance at the conclusion of the war with Russia, describing membership as non-negotiable.

Before the 33rd meeting of the alliance’s leaders taking place in a fortnight in Vilnius, Oleksii Reznikov said Kyiv recognised that accession to Nato was not possible while the conflict continued but insisted hard pledges for the future would need to be made.

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Nato ready to face threat from ‘Moscow or Minsk’, says alliance head after Wagner chief’s exile

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Jens Stoltenberg says alliance has strengthened eastern flank and will protect ‘every inch of Nato territory’ after Prigozhin move

Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg has said the alliance is ready to defend itself against any threat from “Moscow or Minsk” and has increased its military presence on its eastern flank in recent days after Belarus welcomed Wagner rebel leader Yevgeny Prigozhin.

“It’s too early to make any final judgment about the consequences of the fact that Prigozhin has moved to Belarus and most likely also some of his forces will also be located to Belarus,” Stoltenberg told reporters.

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