Stoltenberg: NATO has tripled the strength of its Response Force
In an interview with Journal du Dimanche, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg reported that the strength of the Alliance's Response Force has increased over the last three years.
"After the crisis in Ukraine in 2014, NATO decided to proceed with the biggest reinforcement in a generation. We have tripled the strength of the NATO Response Force to 40,000 men; 5,000 of whom are ready to deploy within a few days," Stoltenberg specified.
According to Stoltenberg, NATO has also stepped up training and patrolling in the airspace of the Baltic States.
Stoltenberg added that cyberattacks are a serious threat to countries in the bloc; as a result, the Alliance has decided to view cyberspace as a military environment. " Cyber defense is now an integral part of collective defense, which means that a serious cyberattack could trigger the invocation of Article 5, just like a conventional attack," he explained.
Stoltenberg explained that these measures, as well as the emergence of two new command structures in NATO, are a response to aggressive actions by Russia.
On November 8, it was reported that the North Atlantic Alliance was mobilizing the cyber capabilities of its members, and that it would create a special center for this. "We will integrate national cyber capabilities into NATO missions and operations as we integrate their conventional capabilities...It will still be under full national control, it will be national capabilities but they will be integrated into NATO missions and operations," Stoltenberg stated.