NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said that Ukraine is losing positions on the front, but is not losing the war, the German newspaper BILD reported.
„The front is moving in the wrong direction. But at what price? The Russians are paying for this with 1,000-1,500 people who die or are seriously injured every day. And yet the Russians are not achieving their goals. No, Ukraine is not losing (the war) and we must support it in taking a position of strength“, the NATO chief said.
Russia continues to advance slowly but methodically on the Donbas front. The Secretary General of the Alliance said that the delivery of certain weapons systems is an individual decision of individual countries.
Rutte stressed that he called on allies to provide weapons systems so that Ukraine has maximum power to defend itself. Specifically, he addressed Berlin and Washington.
„We all want peace, but imagine what will happen if Ukraine loses this war. Then we will have peace under Russian occupation. That will be a terrible situation. We must be able to defend ourselves from Russia. Therefore, oblige politicians to invest more in the defense industry, this is very important," Rutte said. He urged not to be naive about Putin and not to hope for peace with the Russian Federation in the future, UNIAN agency writes, citing his interview with the German publication.
“We must make sure that Putin will never again occupy even one square kilometer of Ukraine”, Rutte said. He noted that for this purpose it is necessary to ensure that Ukraine is in the best possible position, that is, to continue supporting it with weapons and training Ukrainian military personnel.