NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that Russian troops continue to prepare for an attack on Ukraine after Moscow declared two separatist regions in Donbas independent.
“Everything indicates that Russia is still planning a full-scale attack on Ukraine,” Stoltenberg said at a press conference after an extraordinary meeting of the NATO-Ukraine commission.
“We see more and more forces being withdrawn from the camps, organized into battle formations and prepared to strike.”
“NATO allies will provide Ukraine with defense resources, and the parties to the pact are ready, if necessary, to further increase their presence on the eastern flank,” Stoltenberg said.
He added that NATO does not deviate from the rule of joint defense and until then it will be able to prevent an attack on any ally.
“We cannot accept Russia’s request to return to the pre-1997 situation with the pact forces,” Stoltenberg said.
The Secretary General said NATO’s Rapid Reaction Force had been on high alert for several weeks but had not yet been sent on a mission. According to him, 100 alliance fighters are on combat duty, as well as 120 warships in the Mediterranean.
Stoltenberg did not rule out the possibility of a full-scale war due to Russia’s actions to recognize the independence of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Ukraine.
He again expressed hope that Moscow would return to the path of diplomacy.
“We call for this as strongly as possible,” he said.
Stoltenberg supported sanctions against Russia, including Berlin’s decision to suspend approval of the expansion of the Nord Stream gas pipeline.
“We sympathize with the Ukrainian people and their government. We are united in matters of the territorial integrity of Ukraine within the internationally recognized borders, as well as in matters of the country’s sovereignty and independence,” Stoltenberg said.