NATO Secretary-General identifies key mission in supporting Ukraine
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
The North Atlantic Alliance should focus on long-term support for Ukraine. Putin's victory will be a tragedy for everyone, said NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg at the meeting of ministers of the Ukraine-NATO Council in Brussels.
"The task, the challenge now is to make this support long-lasting. Therefore, I welcome the promises that were made that an additional 10 billion euros will be allocated jointly by Germany and the Netherlands. And these will be both weapon systems and support, and I call on the member states to provide support, as well as the US. Because it is in our interests," he says.
At the NATO summit in Vilnius in July, he talked about the intensification of support, as well as the need to ensure operational interoperability between the forces of NATO countries and Ukraine. "That's what we have Rammstein for. It really gives a big advantage and we have to make the support long-lasting. It's in our security interests," he says.
Stoltenberg emphasizes that NATO's obligation is to provide Ukraine with the weapons it needs.
"Because it will be a tragedy for Ukrainians if President Putin wins, but it will also be a danger for us. Because it will be a signal to all totalitarian leaders, not only to Moscow, but to Beijing that if you use force, you will take over countries, and you can get what you want. This is about an international order that is based on rules, where international borders are respected," he adds.
Stoltenberg says that NATO member states provide unprecedented military support. "And this really gives advantages on the battlefield. Because the Ukrainians were able to liberate 50 percent of the territory that was captured after a full-scale invasion," he adds.
Ukraine-NATO Council
The Ukraine-NATO Council was created based on the results of the NATO Summit in Vilnius in July 2023. The first meeting of foreign ministers of the NATO Council - Ukraine will take place on November 28-29. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken will take part in it.
As NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg stated, the heads of foreign affairs of NATO countries will give recommendations to Ukraine on reforms for joining the alliance at a meeting on November 28-29.
