On day two of a meeting in Brussels, NATO foreign ministers will mark 75 years since the signing in Washington on April 4, 1949, of the North Atlantic Treaty that established the transatlantic political and military alliance.

NATO began with 12 members from North America and Europe and was founded in response to growing fears that the Soviet Union posed a military threat to Western Europe.

Seventy-five years later, NATO has 32 members with the newest members being Finland and Sweden, who joined the alliance following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

The NATO diplomats will also meet with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, who told the Reuters news agency that he would press them to provide more Patriot air defense systems to protect against Russian missile attacks.

Thursday will also feature a wreath-laying ceremony to mark the 75th anniversary of NATO’s formation.

Wednesday saw NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg say that the alliance needed to provide Ukraine with more systematic military support over a longer period, and that Kyiv’s membership in the alliance is a matter of “when, not if.”

Ahead of the meeting, Stoltenberg said Russia’s invasion of Ukraine illustrated that NATO’s security concerns are “global, not regional.”

Stoltenberg declined to comment on a proposal for support for Ukraine worth €100 billion ($108 billion) over the next five years.

A German Foreign Ministry spokesperson confirmed that the proposals would be discussed over the course of the two-day Brussels meeting chaired by Stoltenberg.

The proposals received support from the foreign ministers of NATO members Latvia and Poland, whose countries both share borders with Russia.

Latvian Foreign Minister Krisjanis Karins said the proposal could be funded if allied members committed “a certain percentage of GDP.”

Also on the agenda is the race to replace Stoltenberg who will be stepping down after nearly a decade of service.

Some ministers had hoped to choose his successor at the talks, with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte reportedly having the backing of 90% of members.

kb/rt (Reuters, dpa)