Two new NATO initiatives seek to strengthen air defense to counter evolving threats in member nations’ airspace.
Fifteen European Alliance members signed the initiatives during the February 2025 Defense Ministerial in Brussels: Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Türkiye and the United Kingdom. The first “high-visibility” initiative calls for Allies to develop more efficient solutions to lower-level air threats — specifically threats flying below 150 meters.
The second initiative aims to enhance passive air surveillance, such as noise detection, to identify threats that may be missed by active air surveillance systems such as radars and satellites. Czechia joined the Allies signing on to this initiative.
The Alliance also expanded three existing projects to include new members:
- A ground-based air defense capability to counter threats from very short to medium range.
- A multinational ammunition warehousing initiative to support and streamline prepositioned stockpiles.
- A cross-border airspace agreement to increase coordination among Allied civil and military authorities for use of airspace in NATO training and exercises.
The initiatives “demonstrate that we stand shoulder to shoulder to provide effective solutions to ensure our shared security,” NATO Deputy Secretary General Radmila Shekerinska said during a signing ceremony.
During the ministerial, the Alliance for the first time publicly released its integrated air and missile defense (IAMD) policy. The strategic framework outlines continuous activities aimed at deterring air and missile threats in the midst of growing strategic competition as state and non-state actors acquire advanced air and hypersonic missile capabilities, including unmanned aerial systems (UAS), missiles, sensors and command, control, communications, and information systems.
“Russia is developing, fielding and employing numerous advanced air and missile capabilities, and has launched salvo attacks from all azimuths and at all altitudes and velocities, ranging from small UASs to cruise, ballistic and hypersonic missiles,” the policy stated, noting that terrorist groups are also a threat. “While the two main threats are different in nature, there is a need to be able to counter both Russia’s strategic patterns and operations and the strategic patterns and cycle of operations of terrorist groups and organizations.”
IAMD comprises four functional areas that the Alliance considers essential for a seamless and comprehensive posture to achieve “no impact” or “no consequence” effects.
- Air surveillance systems that integrate passive, active, static and deployable technology “that covers all ranges and altitudes,” potentially incorporating artificial intelligence for data fusion and analysis.
- Battle management, command, control, communications and information focused on seamless information sharing across multiple forces and platforms, ensuring resilience, redundancy and flexibility.
- Active air and missile defense systems that provide a layered defense against all types of threats, including missiles and unmanned systems, by operating at multiple ranges and altitudes.
- Passive air and missile defense measures including early warning systems; hardened structures; dispersion; redundancy and camouflage of assets; concealment and deception. “A broader and systemic perspective needs to be adopted as regards the potential NATO passive air and missile defense measures for NATO’s critical infrastructure and assets, by considering resilience as a whole and not only the survivability of separate key elements.”
The policy is expected to drive development and implementation of NATO’s air and missile defense activities as Alliance members are set to address spending as a top priority at the NATO Summit 2025 in the Hague in June.
“We need to shift to a wartime mindset and the [defense] industry needs to shift with us,” NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said during a news conference. “Our continued freedom and prosperity depend on it.”