“We must prepare for the long term”, warned General Secretary Jens Stoltenberg
FILE PHOTO: NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg gives a news conference during a NATO summit to discuss Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, in Brussels, Belgium March 24, 2022. REUTERS/Gonzalo Sources
The West has to prepare for a long war of attrition in Ukraine, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg warned Thursday after talks with US President Joe Biden, in the White House.
“We must prepare for the long term”. “Because what we see is that this war has now become a war of attrition”, the secretary general told reporters.
Stoltenberg is present in the US capital to prepare for the NATO summit scheduled for June 28-30 in Madrid.
The war in Ukraine “could end tomorrow, if Russia ends its aggression”< /b>, the NATO secretary general declared Wednesday during a press conference alongside the head of US diplomacy, Antony Blinken.
But “we do not see any sign in that direction” in this moment, he added.
The war waged by Russia in Ukraine will last “many months”, Blinken pointed out.
A captured Russian tank is transported on a flatbed by the Ukrainian army on a road outside Dnipro, Ukraine, on April 30, 2022. REUTERS/Jorge Silva
On the other hand, on Wednesday the United States confirmed that it will continue with sending weapons to Ukraine to deal with the Russian invasion, reported the White House.
This was confirmed by President Joe Biden in a statement in which he stated: “The people of Ukraine continue to inspire the world with their courage and determination as they bravely fight to defend their country and its democracy against Russian aggression.”
“Today I am announcing a significant new security assistance package to provide timely and critical help to Ukrainian armed forces,” the president said.
“This new package will equip them with new capabilities and advanced weaponry, including HIMARS (missiles) with battlefield ammunition, to defend their territory from Russian advances,” the statement added.
On Tuesday, Joe Biden had published an opinion column in The New York Times entitled “What the United States will and will not do in Ukraine”, where he again defended a diplomatic solution to the conflict, but warned that “each negotiation reflects the facts on the ground.”
That is why, in that same text, he insisted: “We have acted quickly to send Ukraine a significant amount of weapons and ammunition so that he can fight on the battlefield and be in the strongest possible position at the negotiating table.”
The president He specified that they will continue to provide Ukraine with advanced weapons: “Including Javelin anti-tank missiles, Stinger anti-aircraft missiles, powerful artillery systems and precision rockets, radars, unmanned aerial vehicles, Mi-17 helicopters and ammunition.”< /p>
In the brief, Biden also stressed that he will continue cooperate with his partners and allies to impose sanctions on Russia in retaliation for its invasion and that described as “the toughest ever imposed on a large economy.”
(With information from AFP)
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