NATO, European Union announce strengthening alliance

Jan. 10 (UPI) -- The European Union and NATO on Tuesday agreed to enhance their cooperation in light of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and its growing military presence, both organizations said.

With the signing of the Joint Declaration on NATO-EU Cooperation, the European Union, which has 27 member states, and the 30-country military alliance that makes up NATO said they have a deepening need to work together.

Russia has expressed displeasure about the planned addition of Sweden and Finland to NATO.

"We determined to take the partnership between NATO and the European Union to the next level," NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in a joint news conference. "[The NATO-EU partnership] will become even more important once Finland and Sweden become full NATO members.

"With their accession, NATO will be protecting 96% of the citizens in the European Union, and a higher share of its territory than ever before."

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the Russian invasion and the growing threat from China, call for a strengthening of ties between the European Union and NATO.

"The Russian threats and challenges are the most immediate, but they are not the only ones," von der Leyen said in a statement. "We also witness China increasingly attempting to reshape the international order to its benefit.

"We must bolster our own resilience. With this new joint declaration, we are also taking our partnership to the next level. We will deepen our excellent cooperation and expand it to new areas. I would like to look at four of them very briefly."

European Council President Charles Michel added that the Russian invasion has crystalized the need to have a more robust working agreement with NATO.

"We are stronger," Michel said in a statement." NATO has reinforced its presence in Eastern Europe and it will have two new members: Sweden and Finland. [Russian President Vladimir] Putin wanted less NATO, but he has achieved the opposite. He will have more NATO and he will have more EU."