Stoltenberg makes statement on Ukraine's right to decide on negotiations with Russia
Photo: Former NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (Getty Images)
Former NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stated that only Ukraine should decide whether to agree to negotiations with Russia or not. The main task for its partners is to continue helping to make Ukraine as strong as possible, according to Spiegel.
"Only Ukraine can decide when the time has come for serious negotiations or even peace talks, and what the conditions should be. We all want this war to end. But the end of the war does not necessarily bring peace, because Russian occupation is not peace," he said.
According to him, the task is to end the war so that Ukraine can survive as a sovereign and independent state.
"Putin needs to be convinced that he cannot achieve his goals on the battlefield. To achieve this, we must provide greater support to Ukraine. I have no illusions about this. We will not be able to change Putin. But I think we can change his calculations if we continue to support Ukraine," Stoltenberg said.
Stoltenberg's statements about Ukraine
On October 1, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg left his position and handed over duties to Mark Rutte. Stoltenberg will now head the Munich Security Conference.
This is not the first time he has spoken about Ukraine. For example, in mid-September, Stoltenberg stated that Russia had lied to NATO in the final meetings before its invasion of Ukraine. The Russian side claimed it had no intention of attacking.
Commenting on Ukraine’s accession to NATO, Stoltenberg did not rule out that Ukraine could become a member of the Alliance, even though some of its territories remain occupied. In Ukraine’s case, there are ways to address the issue of applying the collective security article.
