March 24, 2022: Biden in Europe, WMD fears at center stage

The big news at the morning NATO confab, announced Wednesday by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, is threefold: (1) NATO is doubling its military footprint in Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia to counter the threat from Russia; (2) Biden and NATO leaders will increase pressure on China to condemn the Russian invasion; (3) NATO will take additional steps to aid Ukraine with “cybersecurity assistance” and “equipment to help Ukraine protect against chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats.” It’s that third issue that has seized everyone’s attention, as WMDs are now a serious focus of the summit. Stoltenberg repeatedly called on Russia to stop its “nuclear sabre-rattling,” and warned that “the spread of chemical or biological agents used in Ukraine may have dire consequences also for the population living in NATO Allied countries in Europe.” Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook newsletter Raghu Manavalan is the Host of POLITICO's Playbook.Jenny Ament is the Executive Producer of POLITICO Audio.