This week, NATO released its first ever quantum strategy, outlining their vision for an alliance that is prepared for the quantum threat, and also fully ready to embrace the advantages brought by quantum computing. Advancements in this technology have the potential for what they describe as a ‘profound shift’ for economies, security and defence.
The strategic vision includes the goal of developing a secure ecosystem for NATO and its Allies, ensuring that the alliance remains both protected against adversarial threats, and prepared for interoperability, by adopting frameworks, policies and international standards. As they point out, many of these new technologies and processes are already used in the private sector, and have become the subject of strategic competition. NATO’s goal is to co-operate with industry, forming a Transatlantic Quantum Community for a coherent approach.
A quantum-ready alliance will necessarily include the deployment of post-quantum defences, and NATO already recognise their importance. Protecting the alliance from the quantum threat is a key goal of the strategy, including supporting research into the quantum resilience of networks, and encouraging the development of PQC and QKD across air, space, cyber, land and marine domains.
Interestingly, NATO also specify the need to be aware of adversarial interference into technology supply chains, as part of their action plan. As with industries engaged in transition to PQC, the migration to quantum-resilient cryptography should involve detailed monitoring and tracking of the supply chain.
For NATO and its Allies, the inevitability of the quantum age brings profound potential, and this first quantum strategy is a key to protecting, defending and shaping the future.