“Although the battle in Donbas is being waged more and more brutally by Russia, the Ukrainian soldiers are showing brave resistance. “With more modern weapons, Ukraine is more likely to be able to drive Putin’s troops out of Donbass again,” Stoltenberg told the German magazine Bild am Sonntag in an interview published Sunday.
The NATO leader believes that it is impossible to predict when the war will end. “Nobody knows. We have to prepare for the fact that it may take years,” he was quoted as saying. energy and food prices “.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Saturday that it was vital to continue supporting Kyiv as the conflict continued. “When Ukraine starts to get tired, it is very important to show that we are with it for a long time and offer them the strategic resilience they need,” Johnson said after a surprise visit to the Ukrainian capital.
Stoltenberg said last week that NATO was investigating a plan to deploy more weapons along its eastern border and to deploy more troops to the area. While the alliance allies agree that there should be a greater NATO presence on its eastern side, there have been internal discussions on how to better deploy forces in the region.
NATO leaders are due to meet in Madrid later this month to discuss the conflict in Ukraine and adopt the new “strategic concept”, a strategic document outlining the alliance’s missions for the next decade.
Stoltenberg said that under the new strategy, Russia would no longer be seen as a “partner” but as a “threat” to security, peace and stability. The document will also mention China for the first time, the NATO leader said, noting that “China’s rise is a challenge to our interests, our values and our security.”
