Stoltenberg termed support for Ukraine “most urgent task” at NATO Summit in Washington

Europe, News, US July 6, 2024 , by IRIA No Comments

NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg previewed the upcoming Washington Summit and stressed that support for Ukraine will be the “most urgent task” at the summit. NATO Allies are expected to further enhance military support to Ukraine and sign defense agreements to strengthen Kyiv’s defense capabilities.

NATO’s Chief Stoltenberg said during a press conference, “I expect heads of state and government will agree a substantial package for Ukraine,” adding that he expects that Allies will agree on a financial pledge for Ukraine and meet the immediate needs of the Ukrainian army, as well as deepen military interoperability.

Stoltenberg highlighted, “NATO will take over the coordination and provision of most international security assistance,” with a command led by a three-star general and the Alliance’s personnel working at NATO headquarters in Germany, as well as at logistical nodes in the eastern part of the Alliance.

At next week's #NATOSummit, increasing support to Ukraine will be a top priority for Allied leaders#StandWithUkraine 🇺🇦
— NATO (@NATO) July 5, 2024

NATO’s Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said, “Deterrence and defense will be another important topic for our Summit.” He highlighted that the Allies will endorse “a pledge to strengthen transatlantic defense industrial cooperation, to boost production”.

Stoltenberg pointed out that Global partnerships will be the third topic for the Summit. “The closer that authoritarian actors align, the more important it is that we work closely with our friends in the Indo-Pacific,” he said.

Leaders of Indo-Pacific nations, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand will also take part at the NATO Summit to further “deepen cooperation, including support to Ukraine, cyber, and new technologies”.

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy EU summit — *^{Ukrainian President Zelenskyy attending a European Union ministers summit in Kyiv, Ukraine, on October 2, 2023. (Image Credit: Twitter/@ZelenskyyUa)}*

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said during his address on July 3, that “There will be important negotiations” during the upcoming NATO Summit in Washington. He highlighted that some progress has been made on “new security agreements for Ukraine” and the only way to stop Russia’s increasing attacks is deploying “more air defense systems” and carrying out “long-range strikes” on the Russian bases.

Zelenskyy said in his social media post, “This summit must become strong not only for Ukraine but also for all our partners. The Ukraine-NATO Council meeting will also be held. We are working on the details of new decisions and documents to be signed with our partners. There are good things to come, including in the area of air defense.”

The Ukrainian president also unveiled that “a new security agreement for Ukraine has been prepared—a robust one that will provide substantial support,” adding that Ukraine and its allies will continuously strengthen our entire architecture of security agreements. “This will ensure our security prior to Ukraine’s NATO membership,” he added.