The upcoming NATO summit in the Turkish capital Ankara in July must mark a new strategic impetus for Europeans and the alliance itself, a French lieutenant general said on Tuesday at the 10th Black Sea and Balkans Security Forum in Bucharest.

Speaking at a panel titled “From the Strait of Hormuz to the Ankara Summit: The Transatlantic Link Under Pressure,” Eric Peltier, deputy head of the French Directorate General for International Relations and Strategy, offered three main insights on the topic.

Peltier said the Iran war is putting increasing pressure on transatlantic ties and that Europeans must “urgently” adapt their security and military policy because the US “no longer considers Europe as a strategic priority.”

“Third, the Ankara summit must mark a new strategic impetus for Europeans and NATO,” Peltier said.

He argued the Iran war is both a “symptom and accelerator” of changes in the global security environment and that the transatlantic security architecture is “at a crossroads of profound transformation and credibility tests.”

On adapting security and military policy, Peltier said Europeans must acknowledge that the US will not be as present in Europe as in the past, stating this trend was already visible during former President Barack Obama’s term.

Among the risks, he said, is the “bilateralization” of relations between European countries and the US, which would lead to “fragmented action and weakened European cohesion,” warning against “burden-sharing turning into burden-dropping.”

He said the Ankara summit must therefore mark a new strategic impetus for both Europe and NATO, “embedded in a collective effort to rebalance the transatlantic relationship and share responsibility for the security of the European continent.”

The two-day forum, which began on Tuesday, brings together officials, experts and representatives from academic and business circles. Anadolu is the global communications partner for the event.

The NATO summit in Ankara will take place July 7-8 and will be the second NATO summit held in Türkiye. The previous NATO summit in Türkiye was held in Istanbul in 2004.

Transatlantic ties

Also speaking on the panel, retired US Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, former commander of US Army Europe, said there is “enormous” pressure on transatlantic relations.

“There always will be stresses inside any sort of coalition or alliance. That’s the nature of these things, because every member brings its own strategic interests… But I’ve never seen it this bad,” Hodges said. “I hope that we will get through that. We should.”

Tacan Ildem, head of the Centre for Economics and Foreign Policy Studies and former Turkish permanent representative to NATO and the OSCE, said the most important outcome of the summit would be a “message of unity and cohesion and solidarity among allies.”

He said commitment to collective defense and Article 5 is “at the heart” of that message, adding allies cannot ignore developments in the Middle East and must be prepared for “any threats and challenges emanating from any direction.”

Glen Howard, head of the Washington-based Saratoga Foundation, said his perspective is shaped by “new geopolitical realities” stemming from the Iran war and tensions around the Strait of Hormuz.

Howard described a blockade of the strait as a “tremendous mistake in American grand strategy,” citing Iran’s potential revenue from tolls and tariffs imposed on ships passing through the waterway.