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Working together for our Euro-Atlantic security: NATO Foreign Ministers Meeting in Brussels
Flags of the member states at the entrance of the NATO headquarters in Brussels © Photothek Media Lab
Foreign Minister Wadephul is attending the NATO Foreign Ministers Meeting in Brussels on 3 December 2025. Read on to find out more about the meeting.
Fair burden-sharing and a clear commitment to the five-percent target
The security situation has changed fundamentally in recent years, particularly in Europe. Russia is continuing to wage its illegal war of aggression against Ukraine. Hybrid threats such as cyberattacks, disinformation campaigns and attacks on critical infrastructure are increasing. For NATO, this means that our deterrence and defence capabilities need to be strengthened across the board.
At the NATO Summit in The Hague, Allies therefore made a clear commitment to the target of investing five percent of GDP in defence. Six months after the Summit, NATO Foreign Ministers are now taking a first inventory and discussing the next steps towards achieving the aim, which is based on concrete capability targets, of increasing defence expenditure.
Prior to his departure, Foreign Minister Wadephul said:
The message we are sending as an Alliance is unequivocal: we are capable of taking action, we are strong, and we are ready to defend what unites us – our security, our freedom and the peaceful order in Europe. That is why it was so important that, at the NATO Summit in The Hague this summer, we agreed as NATO Allies to send a clear and powerful message: we are committed to the five-percent target.
Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine at the top of the agenda
The US is using its political weight to mediate between Kyiv and Moscow and to lay the foundations for further negotiations, and thus for ending Russian aggression. Continued support for Ukraine will therefore be a further priority at the NATO Foreign Ministers Meeting. To this end, the NATO-Ukraine Council will take place as the central forum for cooperation and political dialogue. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Sybiha will attend the meeting.
NATO has drawn up the Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) to provide urgently need assistance to Ukraine. This NATO financing mechanism, which is funded by contributions from NATO Allies, enables the rapid provision to Ukraine of defence equipment that only the US can supply and the use of this equipment where it is needed by Ukrainian soldiers.
Before departing for Brussels, Foreign Minister Wadephul stated:
Putin started the war in Ukraine – and he can end it at any time. He has not yet shown any real willingness to negotiate. That is why we are maintaining pressure on Russia, and, as Allies in NATO, intend to increase it further. To this end, Germany will procure a further 200 million US dollars’ worth of defence equipment for Ukraine, delivered in two packages under the PURL mechanism. We will also contribute an additional 25 million euro to the Comprehensive Assistance Package under the NATO Trust Fund to ensure that Ukrainian servicemen and -women receive the winter equipment and medical support they need, especially now, with ice and snow at the frontline.
Bilateral exchange as diplomacy’s core business
In addition to the sessions in the North Atlantic Council, the Foreign Ministers Meeting also always provides an opportunity to meet partners such as Ukraine and Allies such as Canada and Sweden on the margins of the meeting at NATO Headquarters or to meet bilaterally. The focus of these talks will therefore also be on joint support for Ukraine, a united response to Russian aggression, Russian hybrid threats and the path to just and lasting peace in Ukraine.