At the meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Bucharest on Tuesday, allies reaffirmed their unwavering support for Ukraine and its right to choose its own path.
“We recognize and respect Ukraine’s aspirations for [NATO] membership. However, our focus now is on providing immediate support as Ukraine defends itself against Russian aggression,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said, outlining the key decisions taken by the ministers on the first day of the meeting that sent “a strong message of NATO unity and of sustained support to Ukraine.”
Faced with Russia’s attempts to weaponize winter, “to force Ukrainians to freeze or flee… and to divide all of us who support them,” Stoltenberg said that NATO will continue to support Ukraine for “as long as it takes” and added, “we will not back down.”
In a statement the next day, the NATO foreign ministers confirmed that they remain steadfast in their commitment to Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.
“We will never recognize Russia’s illegal annexations, which blatantly violate the U.N. Charter. We will continue and further step up political and practical support to Ukraine as it continues to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity and our shared values against Russian aggression, and will maintain our support for as long as necessary,” the statement reads.
NATO also thinks it would be reasonable to support other Russia-endangered countries before the “developments go in the wrong direction. At a news conference on Wednesday, Stoltenberg said the allies discussed shared security concerns with Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moldova and Georgia, which he said are facing Russian pressure.
“If there is one lesson learned from Ukraine it’s that we need to support them now … when we have seen developments going in the absolutely wrong direction as we saw with the invasion of Ukraine,” Stoltenberg said.
Other key takeaways from the meeting include the following:
- Allies will help Ukraine repair its energy infrastructure and protect its population from missile attacks.
- NATO will continue strengthening its partnership with Ukraine on its way to Euro-Atlantic integration.
- The security of Finland and Sweden is of immediate importance to NATO, including that in the process of their accession to the alliance.
- The alliance confirms the decisions made at the Bucharest summit in 2008 and all its subsequent decisions regarding Georgia and Ukraine.
Moreover:
- NATO is re-examining the idea of giving Ukraine MiG-29 and F-16 fighter jets, which it abandoned at the start of the full-scale Russian invasion.
- The Swedish government is discussing the possibility of supplying Ukraine with SAAB JAS 39 Gripen fighters. Sweden also announced a record aid package for Ukraine, which includes ground-based air defense systems, ammunition, vehicles, winter equipment and €270 million.
- The U.S. Department of State announced the allocation of $53 million to support Ukraine’s energy system.
- Norway will help Ukraine purchase gas and allocate NOK 2 billion to this end.
