“Green” Security: NATO’s Climate Change Adaptation Strategy

At the Brussels Summit in 2021, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) heads of state and government endorsed the Climate Change and Security Action Plan, which, according to experts, sets an ambitious goal of transforming the alliance into a leading environmental security organization capable of developing adequate adaptation measures to reduce the security impacts of climate change. The article examines the main challenges that the alliance faces in implementing the two tracks of its climate policy. Despite the significant role of the alliance’s member countries in shaping the international climate agenda, the organization’s contribution to the global climate discourse has long remained limited. The article questions the effectiveness of the bloc’s actions in combating climate change; since they are they are aimed at adapting to climate change rather than mitigating its effects. Studying the potential for the use of renewable energy sources in NATO, the article concludes that the development of innovative technologies is inadequate, as are the infrastructural and logistical problems associated with their implementation. The alliance countries have expressed their intention to transition to sustainable energy and to cease their reliance on energy resources from Russia, which could potentially lead to an even greater dependence on supplies of rare earth metals from China. Based on the methods of qualitative and quantitative analysis, the article substantiates that the climate agenda does not correspond to the real actions of the bloc, as evidenced by the increase in military spending and arms supplies to Ukraine. New member countries of the alliance, Sweden and Finland, which are leading the implementation of the United Nations sustainable development goals, are also ready to increase their national greenhouse gas emissions through participation in NATO and increase defense spending in accordance with the requirements of the alliance. The author concludes that although NATO wants to become the first international military-political organization whose policy is aimed at reducing the impact of climate change on security, the actions and goals of the alliance continue to be controversial. The author further predicts an escalating call from international non-state actors for greater climate action within the alliance.