During his first visit to Ukraine since the Russian invasion almost 14 months ago, the NATO Secretary General honored the fallen Ukrainian soldiers at the outer wall of a central monastery. Other program items were not known. Meetings were initially kept secret for security reasons, according to the defense alliance.
At a recent summit meeting of the eastern NATO countries in Warsaw, Stoltenberg spoke out in favor of showing Russia its limits once and for all: “We must not allow Russia to continue undermining European security.” The “cycle of Russian aggression” must be broken ‘ and ensure ‘that history does not repeat itself’.
Coordinator of Assistance to Ukraine
In recent months, Stoltenberg has repeatedly called for new arms deliveries to Ukraine. He was instrumental in rallying and coordinating support from the 31 NATO members. However, the organization itself only provided non-lethal supplies to Kiev, including generators, medical equipment, tents and uniforms.
The US and many other members are providing weapons, ammunition and training to Ukrainian troops bilaterally and in groups, but NATO as a whole wants to avoid being drawn into a war with nuclear-powered Russia.
Surprising NATO chief Stoltenberg in Kiev
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has made a surprise visit to the Ukrainian capital Kiev. During his first visit since the Russian invasion almost 14 months ago, Stoltenberg honored the fallen Ukrainian soldiers on the outer wall of the central St. Michael’s Monastery.
Only on Wednesday did the USA announce further military aid of 325 million dollars (around 300 million euros), mainly in the form of ammunition. Denmark and the Netherlands want to jointly procure 14 Leopard 2A4 main battle tanks.
NATO membership as a goal
Ukraine sees its future in NATO and last year announced an application for accelerated membership. However, accession will still take some time. The NATO countries were in agreement that Kiev should become a member of the alliance, Stoltenberg announced in February. However, that is a “long-term perspective”.
So far there has been no reaction from Moscow to Stoltenberg’s visit. Finland’s recent NATO accession heralded a reshaping of the European security landscape and dealt a severe blow to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Finland’s accession doubles Russia’s border with NATO.
New troops and restructuring
Both sides meanwhile worked on strengthening and restructuring their troops. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that new troops would be prepared for deployment at the front.
According to British intelligence information, the Russian military is likely to carry out restructuring in the occupied territories. A Kremlin report on a visit by Putin to regional combat troops on the Dnipro indicates that a larger Dnipro combat force was formed from regional units to defend the occupied areas in the south. According to British intelligence, the background is likely to be heavy Russian losses.
