Mike Waltz, President Donald Trump‘s new U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, delivered his first remarks before the Security Council on Monday after months of delays and procedural hurdles held up his confirmation. He was confirmed late last week.
Waltz spoke during an emergency session of the council on Russia’s recent incursion into Estonian airspace.
“As we said nine days ago, the United States stands by our NATO allies in the face of these airspace violations,” said Waltz, a former Republican congressman.
“I want to take this first opportunity to repeat and to emphasize: The United States and our allies will defend every inch of NATO territory.”
What is NATO’s Article 4?
Article 4 of the North Atlantic Treaty allows any member state to call for consultations when it feels its territorial integrity, political independence or security is threatened. Unlike Article 5, which commits the alliance to collective defense, Article 4 does not require military action but opens the door for political dialogue and possible joint measures. Member nations have invoked Article 4 several times, including in response to the war in Ukraine and instability along NATO’s eastern borders.
Is Estonia in NATO?
Estonia joined NATO in March 2004 alongside six other Eastern European countries, part of the alliance’s largest expansion to date. The Baltic nation of 1.3 million shares a border with Russia and has been a strong advocate for NATO’s presence in the region. U.S. and allied troops regularly take part in military exercises there as part of the alliance’s efforts to deter Russian aggression.
When did Russian drones enter Polish airspace?
Poland has reported several airspace violations by Russian drones since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Earlier this month, Polish officials said a Russian drone strayed about two kilometers into Polish territory before leaving. Warsaw summoned Moscow’s ambassador and called the violation unacceptable, while NATO monitored the situation closely but did not invoke Article 4.