Setting the scene

Selin Yilmaz, President, YATA International 
Welcome. Thank you for being with us here and online. I'm so honoured and glad to share the stage with an amazing name, Radmila Shekerinska. She is the NATO's Deputy Secretary General and a true ground breaker in European politics as North Macedonia's first female and the longest serving Minister of Defence she helped her country, she helped lead her country into NATO. Before joining NATO, she served as Deputy Prime Minister for European integration. Thank you so much, Ms Shekerinska for being with us today and showing your support to young people. Before we start with the questions I would like to ask your remarks on Mr Secretary General's comments.

NATO Deputy Secretary General 
Well, thank you, Selin, and it's great to be here in Budva after several years. It's, it was really one of the easiest, best and decisions that I'm most proud of in the first few months of my mandate when NATO moved forward on deciding that the next NATO Youth Summit will take place in Montenegro, in a region from where I come from, and it was really a remarkable symbol of the importance that we attach to the region, the importance that we continue to attach to having youth involved in NATO, but it was also a symbol of how we appreciate young leaders, like, for example, the Montenegrin president, who is here with us to show that when we talk about next generation, we don't talk about, you know, the far future. We talk about all of you really joining us today in shaping the world of tomorrow. And this is very much what Secretary General, who is currently in DC and couldn't be here with all of you, wanted to share that we do count on your talent. We count on your contribution. We count on your various creative aspects and professional attitude to create an Alliance that will really guarantee a safer European continent, safer Euro-Atlantic area, and will give us the opportunity to thrive in a prosperous world. So thank you for supporting us in this.

Selin Yilmaz, President, YATA International 
We thank you for making young people like policy leaders of today as well, not just for the future. Before I would like to start with my questions. I want to remind our in person audience and online that we'll be receiving questions online and in person after a couple of questions that will be raising on behalf of you, to Ms Deputy Secretary General, but I would like to start with very important question, because the Alliance is preparing for its Summit in the Hague. The expectations are very high, and also the agenda is super dynamic. So my question is, what should we anticipate from this historic Summit, and which kind of strategic directions do you think it will set for NATO's path forward?

NATO Deputy Secretary General 
Well, we are now gathered at the Youth Summit, but the Alliance is very much preparing for the Summit that will take place in The Hague in the second half of June. It is an important Summit because we are living in dangerous and very challenging times. Several people have mentioned yesterday and today that the war in Ukraine is still raging, and Russia's connections with Korea, North Korea, with Iran and with China are actually interconnecting the Euro-Atlantic area with the Indo Pacific, but they also show how important it is to develop our deterrence and defence as an Alliance, but also as a family of countries which share the same values and the same interests. And the The Hague Summit will very much look into our key goal, and this is, how do we make NATO even stronger? How do we make it more balanced, more equal, I mean the contribution of each of the Allies, and how do we make it more lethal? And let me, let me say, what do we mean by these words, stronger, fairer and more lethal. When we talk about a stronger Alliance. We talk both about unity, but also about being capable to really defend all Allies. So we say all for one, one for all. But it means you really need to have the capacity, you need to have the capabilities, you need to have the force. And this is why the focus on The Hague Summit will be very much in continuing with the trend of increased defence spending. You know when, when security is threatened, nothing else matters. I mean, I come from this region. When I was your age, most of Europe was enjoying its peace dividend, but this region actually understood how peace and security are important. So we know that in the moment when peace and security is threatened, everything else disappears. So when times are challenging, we have to make sometimes difficult choices, and one of these difficult choices is that we need to invest more in our defence. This has already started happening throughout the Alliance. We have seen a number of Allies not just reaching 2% which was the pledge that NATO did more than 10 years ago, but actually going much beyond. And if you see, especially the countries close to Russia they have moved to four, they have pledged even 5% and this is a choice that clearly reflects the threat that everyone is sensing. So the focus on The Hague Summit will be very much how do we increase defence spending? How do we strengthen the defence industrial base? And here we do have also certain opportunities, because this revised defence spending, this strong focus, will mean also new job opportunities. It will require a lot of innovation, which is why Secretary General actually decided to call all of you to join in these efforts, and then when we say we want NATO to be fairer, it means that the sharing of the responsibilities has to be more balanced. And there was clearly a call for European Allies and Canada to do more. They have increased their defence spending, and they have pledged to continue to do so in the future. But also, if you analyse our land forces now throughout the Euro-Atlantic area, you will see that seven out of eight of these formations are actually run and commanded by European commanders. And this shows very clearly that European Allies and Canada have stepped up, and this will very much be the focus at the next Hague Summit. We are here in Montenegro, and we can, if we look at the skies in a certain period of the week, we will see Greek and Italian planes protecting the skies, not only over Montenegro, but also over a number of Allies within the region, and this shows the commitment that Allies have. We also use the words that NATO needs to be more lethal, and I know that it's a bit frightening, right? Let me be very clear, NATO continues to be a defensive Alliance, that's for sure. But those of you who have studied or read history, they know that this has been a reoccurring theme from ancient times to now. Everyone said, if you want to avoid war, you have to prepare it for it. And this is our thinking. This is our philosophy. We invest in our defence and deterrence because we want to deter, we want to avoid war. And if we show the strength, if we show the unity, if we show our capabilities and our determination to protect all Allies, this is how we avoid war. And these are the three deliverables that you know we plan to get at The Hague Summit. I know it's ambitious, I know it's tough, but we believe that the time has come for the Alliance to move forward, and we count on all of you supporting it.

Selin Yilmaz, President, YATA International 
Thank you for the great tips. But also, this is what makes it special, right? It's adaptable to new threats, and it's very important to emphasising importance of it in The Hague Summit. But you also mentioned about this region and how this region understands the importance of peace, because this year marks 30 years since Dayton Peace Accords, which ended the war and started a still evolving peace process in this region. So holding the NATO Youth Summit here in Budva, it feels very meaningful to me, to you especially. And what message does this send to Western Balkans,

NATO Deputy Secretary General 
As the Alliance stated last year at the Summit, as foreign ministers reiterated just few weeks ago at their ministerial NATO meeting, Western Balkans continues to be of strategic importance to this Alliance. And through all of the turmoil of the 90s, we have seen that NATO really supported peace, and this is where we are today as well, although, of course, we don't have war like we had in the 90s. And trust me, it was scary. It was frightening, and it affected everyone in the region. So 30 years ago, I was more or less in your shoes. They were less cool than yours. But we have gone through the ordeal of living between war and peace, living in war and paying a huge price for this. While most of the countries in Eastern Europe moved forward to become members of NATO and afterwards of the European Union, we were stuck in what we call the Balkan mud of conflict and war, and I do believe that many have learned our lessons, right? And one of the big lessons that I've learned at that time is that if you have absence of war, this is not enough. And what I have seen during the 90s is that words matter. We have now a peaceful Western Balkans. Countries cooperate. They don't fight each other. We have a strong interaction. The main focus is membership into the European Union. Many of the countries have moved and become NATO members, so I welcome them here, including my own, but we have still not moved forward with divisive rhetorics. We still have it in the region. We have still nationalistic, secessionist even rhetoric. And this is not just words. What we have seen in the 90s is that words can sometimes be more dangerous than weapons, and that they can lead to violence, they can lead to hatred. And this is why our message to the Western Balkans, we have paid a number of visits, Secretary General was in Sarajevo recently, the whole North Atlantic Council with the Secretary General and myself, was in Pristina. We try really to be very systemic in sending the message: Western Balkan matters. But we also expect more of a regional ownership in solving some of these problems. And the problems will not be solved with hate and divisions. They will be solved with a lot of hard work and cooperation. And this is what we expect. This is what we invest. Our biggest mission is still KFOR. We support also EU efforts and the EU forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina. And we will continue to be very committed to this region. And I call all on the participants to help us in really designing and developing a different Western Balkans, more Western than Balkans, right?

Selin Yilmaz, President, YATA International 
Well, it's important what you're saying, because these people will be the ones taking over the work that you're doing amazingly. And we have to continue, we have to continue investing in the peace and happiness and democracy that we all stand for. But we're in the room with our online audience, full of people already interested in transatlantic security and probably want to build a career in the future, but maybe many others, young people would ask, why should we care about security? Why should we invest in security? Which kind of a message would you like to send them?

NATO Deputy Secretary General 
Uh, 10 years, 15 years, 20 years ago, well, security was probably not very high on the agenda for a career choice among many European, Euro-Atlantic youngsters, because many believed that we live in the best of all worlds and peace is granted. Unfortunately, this is no longer the case. And what we have seen, not only just in the region, what we have seen in Ukraine, what we have seen in areas also not affected by direct war, but by a lot of hybrid attacks. I've just, yesterday, we have recalled the hybrid attacks to Montenegro, where transport and energy infrastructure just three years ago was hit. What we see is that security has come back with vengeance, in a way, and what we also see is that we need, really the involvement of our citizens. It's not just something that the institutions can deal with. We need a societal resilience. We need the involvement of young people, and I do believe that that we need young leaders who will be wary of, in a way, the dangers and the threats, but not afraid to deal with them. So it's a combination of courage and determination and resilience to a certain extent. And I am a firm believer that you can be much better than we ever were, because some of us did not avoid wars, some of us did not prevent and deter wars. And I do hope that this will be done by your generation, but I would strongly urge you, engage. These issues should be dealt with by the best among you, by those who are enthusiastic, by those who have the energy, by those who really want to invest in the community and not just in personal interests. I think that the time of being selfish and just ambitious for the sake of ambition is hopefully gone, but I am a firm believer that you can really do it. So come to the table, stay at the table, and drive the agenda forward.

Question 
Hello. I'm from Georgia, and it's really politically, you know, tense situation in my country. I want to thank all of you for organising this event. It's really means a lot to engage youth policy makers into all the democracy and what we all stand for. I have a question. Since you mentioned about the hybrid threats. Hybrid warfare, including cyber attacks, disinformation campaigns and political interference has become a key part of modern politics, as we've seen in Georgia and in Ukraine and in Montenegro too. Given the increasing frequency and sophistication of these threats, what is NATO doing to strengthen cyber resilience? But also not only within the members of NATO, but also in the partners, and yes, like Georgia? And how does the Alliance plan to deter or respond to the hybrid threats that fall below the threshold of traditional military aggression? Thank you.

Selin Yilmaz, President, YATA International 
Thank you so much for your question. Let's get two more and let our DSG to answer this. And gentlemen in the front please, you stood up already.

Question
Okay. Hello, everybody. My name is Josef, and I'm also happy to be here at this conference. It's my first time here. And I really, when I see like, when I look around me, I already met like, one of, like, really amazing young people who are really inspired to be leaders of the future. And now, with the political steam happening more frequently, and it's accelerating the day we go, I think it's really important to actually tell people more about politics, what's happening in another country. For example, I'm from Slovakia, and every day we are hearing about the lost life of Ukrainians, of Ukrainian soldiers, and many also other soldiers. They're one of the bravest people in the world. They're protecting democracy right at the door to Russia. So we should not really ignore this. And now in the modern times, when somebody asks you a question about war. How would you think a war is waging? What does the war look like? They will imagine like World War One, the trenches, maybe the bombardment tactics [inaudible], the blades and everything. But now, in this modern age, I think the misinformation warfare, or the psychological warfare, is one of the greatest strengths of Russia. That's what I wanted to ask. What's the NATO standpoint on this topic? How can we ensure that not only we are not losing the lives on the front but also the right and healthy mindsets within our country? Right now, we can see a really big political presence about movement of leave NATO, like Slovakia should leave NATO and Europe. And me personally, when I see one of my fellow friends, even like saying that the NATO is bad, I just don't know what to say. And sometimes one voice is not enough. I can tell. I can, like, ask them a question, compare. But sometimes you need, like, a bigger authority to set the motion of these forward thinking. So my question, once again, is, what's the NATO standpoint on this topic? Thank you very much.

Selin Yilmaz, President, YATA International 
Thank you. And before we conclude the third and last question of this round. Thank you, it was a great question, but in order to expand our chance on time with Ms Deputy Secretary General, let's try to keep the questions a bit short and brief, so I would really appreciate it, and please.

Question 
Hello again. Hi everyone, glad to be here. So my question is, for example, my country now is like for two months, they cannot form a government. So my question is, can you tell us some signs of, not signs, but some uncommon security threats that are not just the ones we Google when it comes to security. Maybe some things that kind of are linked to security, but sometimes we miss those points, for example, that might be one of them. Thank you.

Selin Yilmaz, President, YATA International 
Thank you. Well, I think, depend on time, we'll get the second round but very challenging questions, right?

NATO Deputy Secretary General 
Well, yes, they are, and I actually liked hearing more from you. So I know that we are a bit short with time, but I really appreciate also your thoughts, not just the questions. And let me start with a bit with Ukraine, and thank you for raising this up. I do believe that what happens in Ukraine will affect our security as a whole. And the solidarity that was provided, the support that was provided by a huge number of Allies, was the difference between, you know, leaving Ukraine without any assistance alone and supporting it. And it was really remarkable to see that this year, Allies have actually exceeded even some of their pledges by providing military assistance beyond the 20 billion that was announced. And this is a remarkable signal that we are serious. And all of the Allies have made it clear that their support to Ukraine is not something that they envisage for just this year, the first three months, the six months. It is long term. And by doing this, we are developing and supporting the Ukrainian defence forces, but we are clearly also creating an additional deterrence and defence for our Alliance as well. And of course, the Alliance is as good as it is adaptable. And you said this initially. You could say that the war in the trenches is the war of the past. Actually, what we have seen in Ukraine is that war comes in all forms. And you have to be prepared for everything. You have to be prepared for the trenches, but you have to be really prepared for the drones. You have to be prepared for the different hybrid attacks. We have seen a lot of sabotage throughout the Alliance. We have seen attacks to critical infrastructure, especially undersea infrastructure in the north, in the Baltic Sea. And our strength is the adaptability. Our strength is unity. Our strength is the solidarity among us. So for example, when, I think Montenegro was the first country who actually got the support from the hybrid support team from NATO, when they dealt with the attack. And we have offered and several Allies have already seized it. But of course, on hybrid and in supporting partners, there is always more you can do. Because technology is changing. Because our vulnerabilities are changing, and this is actually where the knowledge of younger generation comes as extremely important. Because, you know, the things that we consider to be very complicated, for you, there piece of cake. And we have seen really a drive among a younger generation of people who have done technology to move into the security field, to develop capacities, to develop new defences. And this is what we appreciate very much. You never plan a career, either in politics and sometimes not even in security. I did engineering when I was young, and I did only two years of engineering in my career. But you know, once you develop this knowledge of problem solving, building networks, power, it is helpful in in politics. So I advise all of you who are very enthusiastic about technology, security is a domain that will be booming. There will be huge investments, enormous opportunities, and we want the best and brightest there. And by doing this, we will be able to support Allies and partners even more, you're absolutely right. Quite a number of our partnerships with different countries, including Georgia, contain the element of supporting hybrid, counter hybrid activities, and we will continue to do so. But of course, a partnership depends on both sides. So you know, we are ready, and the countries with which we conclude partnership agreements, they need to be ready and interested. And this brings me to the third and probably most complicated question, but it's a bit connected to us generally as societies. Maybe my political background is still stronger than my defence background. I do believe that we have to look deep within our societies and really discuss and think about our vulnerabilities. I come from a very diverse country in many respects. Ethnically, linguistically, religiously. These are not easy countries, and they always have additional challenges. But unless you do the work internally yourself, there is no magic solution. And here I might say, no external support can help you deal if you are not prepared to invest in a more cohesive, a more resilient and a more open community. So I would say, look at your own vulnerabilities and try to solve the problems. Because putting problems under the carpet usually ends up with a big boom in front of your face. So avoid this. On everything else, as an Alliance, we can provide the capabilities, we can provide the support, but each and every Ally is much more efficient in dealing with some of their own specifics, and we follow the lead of the Allies. So I count on all of you to help us with this.

Selin Yilmaz, President, YATA International 
Again, as you said, Article 4 is before Article 5.

NATO Deputy Secretary General 
Well, on the threshold, there are a lot of discussions. Thank you for reminding me about this. There are various ways in which a hybrid attack can really undermine your capacity to deter and defend. And we have also approached this problem in a with a more creative, I mean, like the decision to move on with Baltic Sentry, after a series of sabotage to undersee critical infrastructure, was a serious signal that the Alliance will not stand still and we will not just observe, but we will react, we will act, and we will protect our Allies. And this is what makes the Alliance strong. This is what makes it relevant. This is what makes it important.

Selin Yilmaz, President, YATA International 
Thank you so much. And I would like to apologise, we are running out of time, and I can only ask one question from online audience who are with us today. And there are so many challenging questions, but I think this one is an important one. One of our audience asked, how big chance does Ukraine have to enter NATO? And what are the risks with that?

NATO Deputy Secretary General 
It's, as you say, an important and very difficult question, because accession was always tricky. I mean, we in the Balkans, when we would observe the accession of to NATO of Eastern European countries, from the outside, it looked like an easy, straightforward process. The more you dig what was happening behind the scenes, the more complicated it looks. For us it was even trickier. So whenever I interact with a lot of Ukrainian colleagues and commending them of their bravery and strong will and determination that they have exhibited, I cannot tell them more, but my own experience. North Macedonia was a country trying to get into NATO for three decades. And it felt like a never ending story. It felt like, you know, we are hitting our wall again and again, our head to the wall. And you know, and then we made it. It took some difficult decisions, again. A lot of hard work, a lot of defence reforms. Significant contributions to both security and defence budgets. But we made it, and we are better off because of it. We are more secure. Investors came with more of a courage and enthusiasm to invest in the country. But if there is one lesson that I've learned, it's that in difficult times when the situation is really bleak, don't give up hope. Don't despair. And when situation is great and everything looks like a done deal, don't relax. The opportunities are there. They have to be seized, but there are also risks, and it's not a straightforward line. So keep up the work, the unity. This is important. Don't give up hope. It's never easy, and that has been probably the lesson of each and every Ally. The Alliance is today stronger because it has the biggest number, 32 Allies. And if Russian President Putin was attempting to undermine and weaken NATO with the attack on Ukraine, it has backfired. Since then, two other countries which have had history of military neutrality, like Sweden and Finland, they have decided to join in. We have increased our strength. We have increased our deterrence and defence because of this decision. And we have shown that the Alliance is there to guarantee peace on European continent, and this is how we want to see this Alliance proceed. Stronger, fairer and more lethal.

Selin Yilmaz, President, YATA International 
It's coming from you is very important, because you led your country in NATO, and you're so experienced in this process. So thank you so much for sharing your insights. Sadly, we have conclude our event. Our time is done with Ms Deputy Secretary General. However, if you have very last and brief comments to our young audience here and online, we would love to hear from you.

NATO Deputy Secretary General 
Thank you for being here. All of you have really done your best. To apply, to be patients to wait for our answers. Let me say big thanks to the Atlantic Council of Montenegro and to our Public Diplomacy Division within NATO. They have done a miracle, compiling all of this in a really short period of time. Let me thank the social media content creators who have tortured me yesterday. Of course, I'm kidding. But this is the fresh air that we expect from all of you. You have, you are here because you wanted to join us. And this is a great event, always is, but keep up the engagement. It is what happens tomorrow, what happens next year, what happens in the next decade that will shape my future, but more importantly your future. So thank you for doing this.

Selin Yilmaz, President, YATA International 
Thank you so much for your time. Thank you everyone.