Madrid 30.06.2022 NATO heads of state and government meeting in Madrid on Wednesday 29 June 2022 approved a new Strategic Concept for the Alliance, setting out the priorities, core tasks and approaches for the next decade. The concept describes the security environment facing the Alliance, reaffirms our values, and spells out the NATO key purpose of ensuring our collective defence. It further sets out NATO three core tasks of deterrence and defence; crisis prevention and management; and cooperative security.

The document defines Russia as the “most significant and direct threat” to Allies’ security, while addressing China for the first time and the challenges that Beijing poses toward Allies’ security, interests and values. The documents also states that climate change is “a defining challenge of our time”. The Strategic Concept is updated roughly every decade and is NATO’s second most important document. It reaffirms the values of the Alliance, provides a collective assessment of security challenges and guides the Alliance’s political and military activities. The previous version was adopted at the NATO Lisbon Summit in 2010.

Ahead of the Summit thousands of protesters marched in Madrid on Sunday,Juin 26, against a NATO plans to launch a new arms race.

Leaders of member countries meet in Madrid on June 29-30, amid tight security, as the organisation faces the unprecedented challenge of Russia refusal of NATO expansion further to the East to Ukraine and Georgia.
However, in spite of Russian opposition to the NATO plans, Finland and Sweden have started the process of joining the Alliance.