NATO’s Chicago Summit Begins

May 18, 2012

The Chicago Summit Official Logo

U.S. President Barack Obama will host world leaders in Chicago May 20-21 for  the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Summit. The Chicago Summit marks the first  NATO summit on American soil in 13 years, and is the first ever outside of Washington, D.C.  NATO's last summit, held in Lisbon, Portugal, nearly 18 months ago, heralded the unveiling of a new Strategic Concept that defines NATO's focus in the 21st century. The Chicago Summit will build on the decisions made in Lisbon, and has three key objectives: Afghanistan, capabilities, and partnerships. These priorities demonstrate how far NATO has evolved since its founding 63 years ago and demonstrate that the reasons for its continued success are that the alliance has proven to be an adaptable, durable and cost-effective provider of security. Among the many issues to be tackled relating to these priorities is Baltic Air Policing. As NATO makes progress towards pooling more national resources, Baltic Air Policing is a prime example of such “Smart Defense.” which is exemplified through the capabilities package that the United States anticipates that leaders will endorse in Chicago. This package for Chicago includes missile defense, the Alliance Ground Surveillance program, and Baltic air policing.