The bloc’s management has been scrambling to reassure Kiev that it received’t push for peace
NATO will hold arming Ukraine till Kiev decides the time is true to enter negotiations with Russia, Secretary Normal Jens Stoltenberg declared on Thursday. The assertion got here after Stoltenberg’s prime aide seemingly recommended a deal whereby Ukraine would abandon its territorial claims in trade for membership within the US-led bloc.
Talking to Norwegian media following a convention, Stoltenberg mentioned that NATO’s precedence is “to assist Ukraine militarily,” including that “in order for you an enduring, simply peace, then army assist for Ukraine is the best way to get there. There isn’t a doubt about that.”
“It’s Ukraine, and solely Ukraine, that may determine when the conditions for negotiations are current. And who can determine, round a negotiating desk, what’s a suitable resolution,” he continued. “Our activity is to assist them.”
Stoltenberg’s assertion was not a radical departure from his earlier rhetoric on Ukraine. The NATO chief has lengthy insisted that Ukraine will combat till it defeats Russia or chooses to hunt peace, however his newest affirmation of assist got here after his prime aide solid doubt on the bloc’s dedication to Kiev’s goals.
Talking on the identical convention on Tuesday, Stoltenberg’s chief of workers, Stian Jenssen, mentioned {that a} resolution to the battle “could possibly be for Ukraine to surrender territory, and get NATO membership in return.” Jenssen claimed that the concept was being actively mentioned inside NATO.
The remarks set off a wave of condemnation in Kiev, the place Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky has outlawed negotiations with the Kremlin so long as Russian chief Vladimir Putin stays in energy, and has promised to retake all of Ukraine’s former territory – together with Crimea.
NATO issued a press release inside hours insisting that its Ukraine coverage had not modified, whereas Jenssen apologized and mentioned that his remarks have been a “mistake.” He additionally praised Ukraine’s “heroic effort” towards Russia and – opposite to what he had mentioned solely a day earlier – claimed that NATO officers have been discussing “how a lot territory Ukraine is ready to take again.”
The Ukrainian army has been locked right into a counteroffensive towards Russian forces since early June, with the operation geared toward pushing south by means of Russian defensive traces, reaching the Sea of Azov, and reducing off Russian entry to Crimea. The operation has to date failed to attain these targets, with the newest Russian figures claiming that Kiev has misplaced greater than 43,000 troops since June, whereas managing to seize solely a handful of hamlets and villages close to Russian traces.
Nonetheless, there is no such thing as a signal that Kiev will search peace within the close to future. Regardless of staggering losses on the battlefield, debates inside Zelensky’s cupboard are targeted on whether or not to pour but extra males into the failing counteroffensive, or to dig in and try a contemporary offensive subsequent spring, Newsweek reported on Wednesday.
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