IRIA News

As the Russian invasion of Ukraine enters its second month, western leaders from around the world gathered in Brussels to take part in an extraordinary session of the NATO Leaders Summit on March 24 to address the grave situation of the Russian invasion and its implications on other western states. All the NATO leaders agreed to ramp up the military forces at Europe’s eastern flanks to retaliate against Russian forces’ possible expansion towards the west.

NATO Leaders Extraordinary Summit

The extraordinary NATO summit was followed by the European Union council and the G7 meeting with the same agenda. All the NATO allies agreed on keeping Jens Stoltenberg as NATO Secretary-General for another year, as his term was set to expire in September 2022.

The joint statement by 30 NATO member states called on Russian President Vladimir Putin “to immediately stop the war and withdraw military forces from Ukraine, and call on Belarus to end its complicity, in line with the Aggression Against Ukraine Resolution adopted at the UN General Assembly of 2 March 2022.”

The joint statement also referred to the March 16 ruling from the UN International Court of Justice that ordered for an immediate stop to the military operations in Ukraine. The joint statement further addressed the issue of the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, “We strongly condemn Russia’s devastating attacks on civilians, including women, children and persons in vulnerable situations. We will work with the rest of the international community to hold accountable those responsible for violations of humanitarian and international law, including war crimes.”

Chemical and Nuclear Weapons Threat

Russian forces have been repeatedly accused of using chemical and nuclear weapons against civilian targets in Ukraine. The NATO allies reaffirmed their support to Ukraine to deal with all possible threats by providing political and practical assistance.

While addressing the possible threat of chemical and nuclear weapons, NATO states leadership assured unwavering support to Ukraine by stating that, “NATO Allies will continue to assist in areas such as cybersecurity and protection against threats of a chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear nature.”

Call on China to stop supporting Russia

Leaders from the NATO states also called on China to abstain from supporting Russia’s war efforts and refrain from providing any kind of assistance to Russia to evade the western sanctions. Many NATO officials have shown concerns over China increasing support for Russia. The statement pointed out these concerns by stating, “We call on all states, including the People’s Republic of China (PRC), to uphold the international order including the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity, as enshrined in the UN Charter, to abstain from supporting Russia’s war effort in any way, and to refrain from any action that helps Russia circumvent sanctions. We are concerned by recent public comments by PRC officials and call on China to cease amplifying the Kremlin’s false narratives, in particular on the war and on NATO, and to promote a peaceful resolution to the conflict.”

NATO’s Defense Strategy

NATO has devised a plan to strengthen its eastern European flank by establishing more military outposts and reinforcing four new battlegrounds in Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia. NATO’s defense action plan comprises placing more than 40,000 troops on its eastern flanks along with significant air and naval support. The troops would adopt a 360-degree approach including the Strategic Concept of Madrid. It was stated that these steps are being taken to “ensure the security of Alliance and the Euro-Atlantic area” the statement further elaborated that all actions are “in line with NATO’s commitment in Article 3 of the Washington Treaty”

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy’s Address

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also addressed NATO’s Extraordinary Summit via video link. Zelenskyy criticized NATO for declining his request for establishing a no-fly zone over Ukraine. He also demanded a “clear answer” from the NATO leadership about providing military equipment to equipment. He again asked for NATO to provide Ukraine with defense weapons such as fighter jets, tanks, multi-launch rocket systems, anti-ship, and anti-aircraft defense systems. He stated that NATO’s lack of clarity on this matter is leading to mass death and destruction of Ukrainian cities.

During his speech, he also stated that “Never, please, never tell us again that our army does not meet NATO standards. We have shown what our standards are capable of. And how much we can give to the common security in Europe and the world.” He warned the NATO leaders that Russia “does not intend to and will not stop the war in Ukraine.”

G7 and European Union Meeting

G7 and EU council meetings were also held right after the NATO Summit. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also attended the G7 meeting. The G7 and EU council meetings were mainly focused on imposing further sanctions on Russia.

U.S. President Biden announced that his government is imposing severe sanctions on more than 600 Russian elites, lawmakers, and companies. He stated that he expects other G7 and EU allies to replicate the sanctions. The G7 and EU council also announced for Sanctions Evasion Initiative, a framework that would be used to impose penalties and sanctions on any country or organization that assists Russia in evading the western sanctions.

The UK announced 65 new sanctions on Russian individuals and organizations including the London-based step-daughter of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

The G7 and EU leaders warned Russia against the use of chemical, biological and nuclear weapons. The leaders also pledged to “work together to support the gathering of evidence of war crimes.”