NATO is rolling out a new satellite surveillance system designed to monitor military activity in Ukraine and along the alliance's eastern borders, senior commander Admiral Pierre Vandier told Bloomberg in comments published on June 12.

The initiative, named Smart Indication and Warning Broad Area Detection (SINBAD), will allow NATO to scan vast territories with unprecedented frequency, using AI-powered analysis to detect changes and alert allies to potential threats. The alliance has reportedly selected U.S. satellite imaging firm Planet Labs as the project's key partner.

"Today, we're not certain the Russians will stop at Ukraine," Vandier said. "We'll be able to tell them: we're watching," he added.

Vandier, who oversees the alliance's battlefield innovations, emphasized that the ability to monitor troop movements and detect ceasefire violations has become a central concern for European allies, particularly as discussions continue around future peace frameworks for Ukraine.

Previously, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer initiated a so-called "coalition of the willing," uniting countries that would back a potential peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia.

So far, at least 37 countries have been involved in the coalition's discussions, with 15 reportedly ready to contribute their troops. Other members have been asked to provide other forms of support, including intelligence, arms, or naval support.

The launch of SINBAD comes as NATO seeks to boost its own capabilities in space surveillance, a field where the alliance has long relied heavily on U.S. assets. While the U.S. remains central to NATO's space strategy, European allies are moving to reduce dependency, especially amid shifting U.S. foreign policy under President Donald Trump.

Trump has repeatedly cast doubt on the U.S. commitment to NATO, signaled intentions to reduce U.S. troop presence in Europe, and blamed Ukraine's pursuit of alliance membership for provoking the war.

The alliance is also expected to endorse a new defense spending benchmark, 5% of economic output, with 3.5% for core defense and 1.5% for related sectors, at its upcoming summit in The Hague on June 24–25.

President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that Ukraine has been invited to attend the NATO leaders' summit. "We were invited to the NATO summit. I think this is important," Zelensky said during a June 2 press conference.

Zelensky noted ongoing discussions with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and other alliance officials on Ukraine's potential role and outcomes at the summit.

Russia doubts NATO’s Article 5, could use ‘little green men’ to test it, German intelligence chief warns

“They don’t need to send tanks for that,” German intelligence chief Bruno Kahl told Table Media. “They just have to send ‘little green men’ to Estonia to defend the allegedly oppressed Russian minority.”

The Kyiv IndependentMartin Fornusek

Wars are no longer won by strength alone, but by defense tech innovations. That’s the message from Anatolii Khrapchynskyi, military expert and deputy director general of an electronic warfare systems company, ArmyInform reports. 

Following the Second Ukraine–EU Defense Industry Forum, Khrapchynskyi called for the creation of a national Engineering Headquarters, a strategic center to fuel breakthrough innovations in Ukraine’s fight against Russia. 

“Only then can we stand not just next to Thales or Rheinmetall, but speak with them as equals,” the expert emphasized.

The forum, hosted by the EU in Brussels, brought together top defense officials and industry leaders from both sides. Among the key participants were EU Commissioner for Defence and Space Andrius Kubilius, Ukraine’s Minister for Strategic Industries Herman Smetanin, EU High Representative Kaja Kallas, and Ukrainian presidential advisor Oleksandr Kamyshin.

“The goal of the forum was to shift from receiving ‘aid’ to engaging in ‘co-production’, from dependency to cooperation,” Khrapchynskyi said.

A major outcome was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Ukrainian government and the Aerospace, Security and Defence Industries Association of Europe (ASD). A Ukraine–EU Defense Industrial Cooperation Task Force was also launched.

The European Union has become the largest state investor in Ukraine’s defense sector, directing €1.4 billion in proceeds from frozen Russian assets toward Ukrainian-made weaponry, including drones, artillery, and electronic warfare tools.

Khrapchynskyi stressed that Ukraine is not merely a proving testing ground for Western technology — it is becoming their creator.

Ukraine has built the world’s largest aircraft, the Mriia, crippled Russia’s Black Sea Fleet with Magura naval drones, is now carving out its own niches: reconnaissance systems, EW, drones, and adaptive weaponry.

“We’re no longer catching up. We’re setting the tone — the tone of voice — for the new defense reality,” Khrapchynskyi explained.

He warned that despite sleek presentations from Western firms, war demands simple, fast, and effective solutions, qualities that Ukrainian innovations already possess. The key now is to protect these technologies from being shadowed by large foreign defense corporations.

That is why Khrapchynskyi is advocating the idea of an “Engineering Headquarters”: a centralized command for defense innovation where front-line needs are rapidly translated into mass-produced solutions that are standardized, unified, and synchronized with Europe’s defense ecosystem.