As the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine is about to mark a 'brutal anniversary', NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, during the Munich Conference, expressed grave concerns over the possibility of Moscow would winning the "special military operation".
While speaking at the conference where nearly 700 top foreign dignitaries including US Vice-President Kamala Harris was due to attend, the NATO Chief said, "Some worry that our support to Ukraine risks triggering escalation. Let me be clear: there are no risk-free options, but the biggest risk of all is if Putin wins."
World be more vulnerable
"This will make the world more dangerous and us more vulnerable," Russian news agency TASS quoted the top NATO official as saying during the conference on Saturday.
He underscored that the world needs to provide more lethal weapons to the war-torn nation and urged the international community to extend maximum assistance to Ukraine. "We must give Ukraine what they need to win and prevail as a sovereign, independent nation in Europe," he noted.
Security environment will change forever
The Secretary-General argued that even if the war ends tomorrow, our security environment has changed for the long term. He said that Russian President Vladimir Putin wants a different Europe, where Russia controls neighbours.
“We also know that Beijing is watching closely, to see the price Russia pays, or the reward it receives for its aggression,” Stoltenberg said, stressing that the war in Ukraine demonstrates that security is global, rather than regional, and defence is not optional.
The Secretary-General also stressed the importance of resilience. “Not so long ago, many argued that importing Russian gas was purely an economic issue,” he said, adding that “we should not make the same mistakes with China and other authoritarian regimes.”
Stoltenberg highlighted that, “the most important lesson from the war in Ukraine is that North America and Europe must stand together,” stressing that “without NATO, there is no security in Europe.”
Also Read: Putin's chilling message to Ukraine: "No doubt Russian victory in Kyiv is inevitable"
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