NATO update

 

NATO Military Committee Conference: Opening remarks by the Chair of the Military Committee NATO’s highest Military Authority, the Military Committee, is meeting at the Chiefs of Defence level from 26 to 27 September 2025, in Riga, Latvia. Click here to download the opening remarks by the Chair of the Military Committee, Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, the President of Latvia Edgars Rinkēvičs and the Chief of Defence of Latvia Kaspars Pudāns. The joint press conference with the Chair of the NATO Military Committee, Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, and the Latvian Chief of Defence, Major General Kaspars Pudāns will be available after the event on the NATO Multimedia portal.

USS Gerald R. Ford sailed under NATO command in Neptune Strike 25-3 Neptune Strike 25-3 is a long-planned enhanced vigilance activity designed to demonstrate the complex integration of high-end maritime strike capabilities and air-land integration. In total, up to 20 surface vessels and submarines, Special Operations Forces from several countries, and numerous aircraft of all types participated in the activity, involving more than 10,000 sailors, soldiers, aviators and marines. The activity was conducted across a wide area in Europe, from the central Mediterranean and Adriatic Sea up to the North and Baltic Seas. It took place from 22 until 26 September 2025. In the North Sea, the carrier strike group led by the US aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford was accompanied by US destroyers USS Winston S. Churchill and USS Mahan, and the French frigate FS Bretagne, among other vessels. The Danish frigate HDMS Niels Juel also operated with them in these waters. Click here to download the b-roll and here for the photo gallery. Footage includes F/A-18 Super Hornets manoeuvring, taking off and landing on the flight deck of the USS Gerald R. Ford, and interviews with commanding officers from the British Army and the French Navy. 26 September 2025 Update NATO Secretary General visits New York during UNGA, addresses West Point cadets On 24 September 2025, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte travelled to New York as the United Nations hosted its 80th General Assembly, engaging with political leaders and senior officials. Read more Statement by the North Atlantic Council on recent airspace violations by Russia The North Atlantic Council met this morning at the request of Estonia, under Article 4 of the Washington Treaty, to consult and strongly condemn Russia’s dangerous violation of Estonian airspace on 19 September. Read more NATO and Canada conclude agreement on co-location of NATO Liaison Office to the United Nations NATO and the Government of Canada have concluded an agreement on the co-location of the NATO Liaison Office (NLO) ​with the Canadian Permanent Mission to the UN in New York. Finalised on 24 September 2025​​, the temporary arrangement ​is intended as a stepping stone toward a more permanent one. Read more Allies demonstrate agility during tactical airlift, with first-ever landing on volcanic island in the High North In a recent deployment, a United Kingdom Royal Air Force (RAF) A400 transport aircraft landed for the first time on Jan Mayen, Norway, delivering a U.S. Marine Corps Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) from a pre-positioned location in Norway. (Story courtesy of Allied Air Command) Read more NATO aircrews reinforce rescue readiness in Lithuanian-led exercise From 15 to 19 September, Allied air forces and maritime units from Estonia, Hungary, Latvia and Lithuania conducted joint sea-survival and rescue operations in Lithuanian territorial waters as part of exercise ”Baltic Bikini 2025”. (Story courtesy of Allied Air Command) Read more NATO launches tthird iteration of Neptune Strike 2025 in European theatre NATO is conducting Neptune Strike 25-3 from 22 to 26 September. The large-scale multinational enhanced Vigilance Activity spans the Mediterranean, Adriatic, North and Baltic Seas, bringing together more than 10,000 sailors, soldiers, aviators and marines from 13 Allied nations. (Story courtesy of Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO & JFC Brunssum) Read more THIS WEEK IN PICTURES