NATO Summit begins in Lithuania | Reuters

NATO’s fourth summit since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will take place in Vilnius, Lithuania today.

Leaders from NATO states, alongside those from Indo-Pacific partners Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand, will meet in Vilnius for two-days. They are expected to approve NATO’s first comprehensive defense plan since the end of the Cold War. The plan will outline the organization’s strategy on how to respond to a potential Russian attack and provide clear guidance on how European armies should upgrade and integrate their military forces.

Another focus point will likely be Sweden’s accession to NATO. Just ahead of the summit, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed to lift his country’s veto on Sweden joining the organization. Other discussion topics will include security assurances to Ukraine, increasing NATO’s military spending and the permanent deployment of additional NATO forces along its eastern flank, recently extended through Finland’s accession. Expect Stronger cooperation on security threats stemming from China to also be on the agenda.

Still, while military integration and rearmament of NATO forces moves ahead swiftly, several sticking points remain. French President Emmanuel Macron has confirmed that his country would veto recent plans by NATO to open an office in Tokyo and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg’s term has just been extended another year due to disagreement over his successor.