Secretary General Stoltenberg: Ukraine will inevitably join NATO

(Dan Tri) – NATO Secretary General said that Ukraine will definitely join this alliance, on the occasion of Western leaders gathering in Kiev to celebrate the 2nd anniversary of Russia opening a `special military campaign`.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg spoke during a press conference at the 60th Munich Security Conference in Munich, Germany on February 16 (Photo: AFP).

Russia `started this fighting because it wanted to close the door to NATO`… but they did the exact opposite: Ukraine is now closer to NATO than ever,` the Financial Times on February 24 quoted Mr. Stoltenberg as saying.

Mr. Stoltenberg said NATO is helping Kiev improve Ukraine’s `compatibility` with the alliance.

`Ukraine will join NATO. The question is not if it happens, but when it happens,` Mr. Stoltenberg emphasized.

Fighting enters its third year as US funding for Ukraine dwindles, causing a shortage of weapons and ammunition.

A $60 billion aid bill has been stalled in the US Congress due to a dispute between Democrats and Republicans over illegal immigration and security at the Mexican border.

On February 24, Mr. Biden called on Republicans to pass the bill `before it’s too late` for Ukraine.

Mr. Biden visited Kiev in 2023, just before the anniversary of the first year of conflict, but he did not go to Ukraine to attend the G7 meeting last weekend or send a replacement representative.

Writing on the X platform on February 24, European Council President Ursula Von der Leyen announced that the EU would support Ukraine financially, economically, and militarily `until this country is finally free.`

Ms. von der Leyen also said that the first tranche of the aid package worth 50 billion euros – 4.5 billion euros – will be delivered to Ukraine in March.

Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine, Mr. Oleksandr Syrsky, thanked foreign partners for their support, adding on Telegram: `Every shell, every tank, every armored vehicle, is first of all an action.`

Ukrainian marines unload ammunition boxes at a training ground for new recruits in Zaporizhia province in July 2023 (Photo: New York Times).

Countries such as Japan, Sweden, Canada, Denmark and the Netherlands have announced billions of dollars in military aid on the third anniversary of the conflict.

But military experts say those commitments are not enough to fill the gap when the US Congress cannot pass a $60 billion aid package.

The United States is the largest source of military aid to Ukraine and has sent $46 billion since the outbreak of the conflict, as well as $28 billion in other assistance.

The EU’s four-year financial package worth 50 billion euros will hardly meet Ukraine’s economic needs.

Last week, Mr. Biden said that it was the lack of support from the US that forced Ukraine to withdraw from its stronghold of Avdiivka east of Donetsk.

Mr Zelensky also recently criticized Western allies for what he called a `shortage of artificial weapons`.