NATO has discussed the situation in Ukraine at an emergency meeting convened since Russia invaded Ukraine. Stoltenberg had invited the partner countries Sweden and Finland to the meeting.
The military alliance NATO will further strengthen the defense of its member states in the eastern part of Europe, the military alliance announced on Friday. NATO leaders discussed the situation in Ukraine at an emergency meeting today.
Secretary – General Jens Stoltenberg according to which parts of the Rapid Reaction Force will be deployed. According to Stoltenberg, this means thousands of soldiers, naval equipment and air force equipment. There will be U.S. and French troops going to different parts of Eastern Europe, Stoltenberg said.
– We are in a new security situation in Europe, said Stoltenberg.
According to Stoltenberg, Russia is trying to change the Ukrainian administration. He also said Russia had made a major strategic mistake.
“No one should believe Russia’s lies”
Stoltenberg said that he had invited the partner countries Finland and Sweden to the meeting, as the situation affects everyone.
– No one should believe Russia’s lies, said the joint statement of the meeting, which was attended by the leaders of 30 member states.
NATO again condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. NATO is also urging Russia to stop moving forward in Ukraine.
– The rest of the world believes that Russia and Belarus are responsible for their actions, the statement said. NATO calls on all countries in the world to condemn the attacks on Ukraine.
Stoltenberg announced that some NATO countries will continue to provide military assistance. This means, for example, helping Ukraine’s air defense. According to Stoltenberg, Ukraine has been able to cause “harm” to Russian attackers.
The meeting was not intended to make decisions, but was debating. The meeting had previously estimated that there would be a discussion, for example, about NATO’s rapid reaction force, which could be as large as 40,000 troops.
The Baltic countries, Poland and Bulgaria have been concerned
NATO’s Baltic states, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, as well as Poland and Bulgaria, have been concerned about their security since Russia launched an attack on Ukraine on Wednesday.
NATO has 5,000 troops in the Baltics and Poland, but in recent months it has stepped up its defense in these four countries. For example, on Friday, British military equipment arrived in Estonia.
The Baltic states have called for military, financial and political assistance to be sent to Ukraine. However, NATO, as an organization, does not intend to help Ukraine, instead individual countries may choose to support Ukraine militarily.
The United States said on Thursday it would send 7,000 troops to Germany in addition to the 5,000 soldiers recently sent there. Politico magazine (go to another service) according to the troops set off “in the next few days.”
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi has accused the West of being slow to respond to Ukraine ‘s attack on Russia.
Niinistö’s press conference can be viewed on ‘s special broadcast on TV1 and from this link.
Updated 18.47: information start time.