Germany proposes forming commission to save NATO

Germany on Wednesday proposed setting up a high-level experts commission to make NATO more capable of addressing new challenges and preventing divisions within the alliance.

German Foreign Ministry spokesman told a news conference in Berlin that Foreign Minister Heiko Maas would present his proposal during a NATO foreign ministers meeting in Brussels on Wednesday.

"The proposal envisages setting up an experts commission under the direction of the NATO Secretary General," Rainer Breul said, adding that such a commission could initiate a strategic debate on new challenges, develop new concepts and policies for NATO and help restore confidence in the alliance.

Germany’s initiative came after French President Emmanuel Macron raised doubts about NATO’s future viability and said he believed the alliance was undergoing "brain death".