Western Europe due to this fact must “redouble” its assist for Kiev, British Protection Secretary John Healey has insisted
The battle between Russia and Ukraine is getting into a “important stage,” that means that Kiev wants much more assist from its international backers, British Protection Secretary John Healey has mentioned.
Healey was commenting following a gathering of the protection ministers of Germany, France, the UK, Italy and Poland in Berlin on Monday. Ukrainian Protection Minister Rustem Umerov joined the summit through video hyperlink.
“We mentioned with Rustem Umerov the necessity to redouble our assist for Ukraine as a result of the protection of Europe, the protection of the UK, begins in Ukraine, and if [Russian President Vladimir] Putin prevails in Ukraine, he is not going to cease there,” the UK protection secretary claimed.
Healey recommended that “the battle in Ukraine is getting into a important stage” and urged the Western European nations “to step up our safety and our collective protection.”
Through the press convention, German Protection Minister Boris Pistorius addressed the attainable change within the US method to Ukraine after President-elect Donald Trump, who has been skeptical about additional support to Kiev, returns to the White Home on January 20, 2025.
“With President Trump, with a brand new US administration, sure issues will change, and the earlier we put together for this, the higher. And, in fact, we are going to proceed to coordinate intently with our European companions,” he mentioned.
Berlin and its NATO companions will proceed to assist the Ukrainian army and the nation’s protection business, the German protection minister promised. “Our goal have to be to allow Ukraine to behave out of a place of power,” he mentioned.
Moscow’s army operation not solely impacts Ukraine, as “Russian threats are at all times directed at us on the identical time,” Pistorius claimed.
French Protection Minister Sebastien Lecornu introduced that Paris plans to provide Kiev with Mistral short-range air protection programs within the coming weeks.
Earlier this yr, Russian President Vladimir Putin rejected allegations that his nation was planning aggression in opposition to NATO as “nonsense.” He mentioned such claims are made by Western politicians to deceive the general public of their international locations and justify elevated spending on protection and support to Kiev amid the battle with Moscow. “In Ukraine, we’re simply defending ourselves,” Putin insisted.
Nevertheless, after Ukraine obtained permission for long-range strikes from the US and UK and used foreign-supplied missiles to focus on Russia’s internationally acknowledged territory final week, Putin warned that “we think about ourselves entitled to make use of our weapons in opposition to the army amenities of these international locations that permit using their weapons in opposition to our amenities.” He added that within the occasion of an escalation of aggression, his nation will reply “decisively and in a mirror-like method.”
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