NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Wednesday called on members of the Atlantic Alliance to “further strengthen” Ukraine’s air defenses, following Russia’s “indiscriminate strikes” on several Ukrainian cities.
In Brussels, at NATO headquarters, Jens Stoltenberg considers that the situation “is serious” and condemns Moscow’s option to attack “civilian targets”, including critical infrastructure, such as electricity production.
“The horrific and indiscriminate attacks on Ukrainian cities, [com] civilians killed, critical civilian infrastructure destroyed and attacks on energy infrastructure are serious, especially as we approach winter”, criticized Jens Stoltenberg, considering that “all this demonstrates the urgent need for more air defense for Ukraine”.
“The allies have provided air defense, but we still need more,” warned the NATO secretary general, specifying that “different types of air defense are needed, short-range air defense systems [e] range to hit ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, drones.”
“Different systems for different purposes” are the immediate needs to deal with attacks from Moscow. The NATO secretary general hopes that the aid will arrive in amounts appropriate to the size of the country.
“Ukraine is a great country, [com] many cities [e] therefore, we must step up to help Ukraine defend even more cities and more territory against horrific Russian attacks on its civilian population,” Stoltenberg said.
Asked about Belarus’s actions and the cooperation agreement with Russia in military matters, Stoltenberg leaves a message for Vladimir Putin’s European ally.
“I hope that the Lukashenko regime has stopped being complicit in this war,” he said. “We have seen how Belarus has been used as a stage for launching missiles, [para] air strikes against Ukraine and the president [Lukashenko] should stop helping to support the Russian war effort,” appealed the NATO secretary general, speaking at the entrance of the meeting of defense ministers of the Atlantic Alliance.
On the eve of the meeting, Stoltenberg called Russia’s multiple attacks on Ukraine “a sign of weakness” as the Kremlin’s army “cannot advance on the battlefield.”
“Indeed, Russia is losing on the battlefield. They are giving up territory because they do not have the capacity to stop the advance of the Ukrainian forces”, commented the Secretary General of NATO, defending support for Ukraine “for as long as necessary”.
“President Putin started this war [e] it has to put an end to it,” reiterated Jens Stoltenberg. Regarding the recent threats of Vladimir Putin regarding a nuclear war, he says that NATO is attentive and leaves a warning, before the speech coming from the Kremlin
“President Putin’s veiled nuclear threats are dangerous and irresponsible [e] Russia knows that a nuclear war cannot be won and should never be fought,” he stressed. “We are closely monitoring the Russian nuclear forces,” she revealed, guaranteeing that NATO “has not seen any change in Russia’s posture, but we remain vigilant.” “
This Wednesday and Thursday, NATO defense ministers will discuss forms of coordination between allies for the protection of critical infrastructure. The meeting is expected to result in a strengthened commitment to maintain aid to Ukraine “for as long as necessary.”
Source: TSF
