BUCHAREST (AP) — NATO returns to the scene of one of its most controversial decisions Tuesday, intending to repeat its promise that Ukraine — now in the 10th month of a war with Russia — will one day join the alliance. largest military in the world
NATO foreign ministers will meet for two days at the Parliament Palace in the Romanian capital, Bucharest. It was there in April 2008 that US President George W. Bush persuaded his allies to open the NATO door to Ukraine and Georgia, despite vehement Russian objections.
“NATO welcomes the Euro-Atlantic aspirations of Ukraine and Georgia for NATO membership. We agreed today that these countries will become members of NATO,” the leaders said in a statement. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who was at the summit, described this as “a direct threat” to Russia’s security.
About four months later, Russian forces invaded Georgia.
Some experts describe the decision in Bucharest as a massive mistake that left Russia feeling hemmed in by a seemingly ever-expanding NATO. NATO counters that it does not pressure gang countries to join, and that some applied for membership to seek protection from Russia, as Finland and Sweden are now doing.
More than 14 years later, NATO will commit this week to long-term support for Ukraine as it fends off Russian air, ground and missile attacks, many of which have hit power grids and other civilian infrastructure, depriving millions of people. of people for electricity and heating. .
At a press conference Monday in Bucharest after a meeting with Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stressed the importance of investing in defense “as we face our biggest security crisis in a generation.” ”.
“We cannot let Putin win,” he said. “This would show authoritarian leaders around the world that they can achieve their goals through the use of military force and make the world a more dangerous place for all of us. It is in our own security interests to support Ukraine.”
Stoltenberg pointed to Russia’s recent bombing of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and said that Putin “is trying to use winter as a weapon of war against Ukraine” and that “we need to be prepared for more attacks.”
North Macedonia and Montenegro have joined the US-led alliance in recent years. With this, Stoltenberg said last week before traveling to Bucharest, “we have shown that the NATO door is open and that it is the NATO allies and aspiring countries who decide on their membership. This is also the message for Ukraine.”
This meeting in Bucharest is likely to see NATO make new promises of non-lethal support to Ukraine: fuel, electricity generators, medical supplies, winter gear and drone jamming devices.
Individual allies are also likely to announce new supplies of military equipment for Ukraine, primarily the air defense systems that Kyiv so desperately seeks to protect its skies. NATO, as an organization, will not offer such supplies, lest it be drawn into a broader war with Russia, which possesses nuclear weapons.
But the ministers, together with their Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba, will also look further afield.
“In the long term, we will help Ukraine transition Soviet-era equipment to modern NATO standards, doctrine and training,” Stoltenberg said last week. This will not only improve the Ukrainian armed forces and help them integrate better, but also fulfill some of the conditions for membership.
That being said, Ukraine will not be joining NATO any time soon. With the Crimean peninsula annexed and Russian troops and pro-Moscow separatists controlling parts of the south and east, it is unclear what Ukraine’s borders would look like.
Many of the 30 allies believe that the focus now should be solely on defeating Russia.
“What we have seen in the last few months is that President Putin made a huge strategic mistake,” Stoltenberg said. “He underestimated the strength of the Ukrainian people, the Ukrainian armed forces and the Ukrainian political leadership.”
But even as economic pressure (high electricity and gas prices, plus inflation, all exacerbated by the war) mounts on many allies, Stoltenberg would not pressure Ukraine into peace talks, and indeed the European and NATO diplomats say Putin seems unwilling. to come to the table.
“The war will end at some point at the negotiating table,” Stoltenberg said Monday. “But the outcome of those negotiations depends entirely on the situation on the battlefield,” adding that “it would be a tragedy for (the) Ukrainian people if President Putin wins.”
The foreign ministers of Bosnia, Georgia and Moldova, three partners NATO says are under increasing Russian pressure, will also be in Bucharest. Stoltenberg said that NATO “will take additional steps to help them protect their independence and strengthen their ability to defend themselves.
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Cook reported from Brussels.
