NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said before Tuesday’s meeting of defense ministers that the most important thing is that Finland and Sweden advance to NATO as quickly as possible.
Riikka Kajander,
Vilma Romsi,
STT
14.2. 11:21•Updated 14.2. 14:55
Secretary General of NATO Jens Stoltenberg says that the main question is not whether Finland’s and Sweden’s NATO ratifications will be done at the same time, but whether both would be ratified as members as quickly as possible.
– I am sure that both will become full members and I will work so that both are ratified as soon as possible.
Stoltenberg commented on the issue during the NATO Defense Ministers’ Meeting in Brussels.
Minister of Defense Mikko Savola (central), on the other hand, said before the meeting that simultaneous progress with Sweden is the primary goal. However, he stated that there are many moving parts in the matter and said that it is also a matter of NATO.
According to Savola, the main thing is that both Finland and Sweden are members of NATO by the time of the Vilnius Summit, i.e. in July.
– This hand in hand is our starting point in joining NATO with Sweden. But it remains to be seen whether there will be a difference in this scheduling, he said.
Finland is present at the NATO defense ministers’ meeting as an observer member.
Stoltenberg: Putin is planning new attacks in Ukraine
Stoltenberg also said that the Russian president Vladimir Putin is planning new attacks in Ukraine. According to Stoltenberg, NATO will continue to support Ukraine in the war.
– We see no signs that President Putin is preparing for peace. On the contrary, he is preparing to increase attacks in the war in Ukraine, Stoltenberg said.
According to him, NATO’s task is to ensure that Ukraine gets the weapons it needs to win the war.
Ukraine announced again on Tuesday that it is pursuing fighter jets, but NATO countries are particularly worried about the dwindling supply of ammunition to Ukraine. Stoltenberg warned on Monday that Ukraine is using munitions much faster than allies can deliver them.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced before the NATO meeting that Germany has signed an agreement with arms manufacturer Rheinmetall to restart the production of ammunition for the Gepard tanks supplied to Ukraine.
NATO’s defense ministers are also scheduled to discuss the goal of raising member countries’ defense budgets to two percent of their gross domestic product. According to some member countries, this is too little, while some member countries do not even reach this goal.
Sources: Reuters, AP
Updated 14.2. at 12:06 p.m.: Added Savola’s comments.
Updated 14.2. at 2:29 p.m.: Added information about the themes of the NATO meeting.