MOSCOW (Sputnik) — NATO defense ministers approved Thursday a military concept for the bloc’s Response Force, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said Thursday.
Stoltenberg said that the completed military concept was approved by the ministers, including its command and control.
"We now have everything in place to make the Response Force stronger, faster and more capable," Stoltenberg told the press after the meeting.
The NATO Response Force (NRF) is a technologically-advanced high-readiness unit combining land, air, and maritime forces within the alliance. The initiative was launched in 2002, and members created an operational group in 2014, as a response to changing security needs.
In June, NATO announced the expansion of its readiness defense troop force to 40,000.
NATO members will create a Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (VJTF), dubbed "Spearhead," to have a deployable force available to respond to threats on short notice.
