NATO will not tolerate hybrid actions against members, U.S. envoy says

NATO members should not accept deliberate hybrid-war actions, and the United States will stand with countries dealing with them, U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker said on Saturday.

Whitaker singled out last month’s attempted drone attack at Germany’s Leipzig/Halle Airport as more concerning than other recent incidents involving NATO members. Berlin has blamed Russia for the incident. Whitaker linked the concern to Russian drones targeting Ukraine that had strayed off course.

“Then you have what I would call the more concerning hybrid actions as we saw in Leipzig, as we have seen in Poland,” Whitaker said on the sidelines of a business conference in Italy.

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Then you have what I would call the more concerning hybrid actions as we saw in Leipzig, as we have seen in Poland.

He said NATO members needed to remain prepared and vigilant, while sending a strong message when challenged by such events. “If we can identify who’s doing it, which Germany did, we make sure we express strongly that it is unacceptable and we will not tolerate it,” he said.

Whitaker also warned that critical infrastructure, including energy assets, could come under attack. National authorities should monitor those facilities, he said. Responses would remain primarily national, but the United States would support countries as they dealt with such acts.

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If we can identify who’s doing it, which Germany did, we make sure we express strongly that it is unacceptable and we will not tolerate it.