2024-02-28 13:58:39
NATO and members of the military alliance indicated this Tuesday that they do not plan to send troops to Ukraine to fight against Russiaafter the French president, Emmanuel Macrondeclared that they were taking it under consideration and that Moscow warned that this will aggravate the war conflict.
“NATO allies are providing unprecedented support to Ukraine. We have been doing this since 2014 and have intensified it after the large-scale Russian invasion, but there are no plans to deploy NATO combat troops to the country“said the secretary general of the Atlantic alliance, Jens Stoltenberg. Germany, the United Kingdom and Spain also disagreed with the idea, like Sweden, which has just overcome the last obstacle to join the alliance.
While, Russia indicated that it is not in the interest of the West to send troops to Ukraine. “It is not in the interests of those countries at all, and they should be aware of that,” presidential spokesman Dmitri Peskov told reporters in Moscow. The head of the Russian delegation to negotiations in Vienna on military security and arms control, Konstantin Gavrilov, warned that the risk of a direct confrontation between NATO and Russia would increase. “The consequences of the growing risk of the conflict turning into a direct clash between NATO and Russia may be the most unpredictable,” Gavrilov explained, speaking to the Russian news agency. Sputnik.
“We will do everything necessary so that Russia cannot win”
The Russian warning came after Macron announced on Monday the creation of a coalition to send longer-range munitions and missiles to Ukraine and stated that sending Western troops to stop the Russian advance should not be ruled out, although he admitted that for the At the time there was no consensus for that.
“Today there is no consensus on sending troops, but nothing should be ruled out; we will do everything necessary to ensure that Russia does not win this war,” Macron declared. during his speech at the Ukraine Support Conference held in Paris, which was attended by leaders from more than 20 European nations, and which was also attended by representatives of the United States and Canada.
The new coalition will supply medium and long-range missiles and bombs to Ukraine, the French president said and assured that the defeat of Russia is essential for security and stability in Europe. “We will do everything necessary so that Russia cannot win this war, and I say this with all the humility that must be had when we look at the two years that have just passed,” Macron argued..
In this sense, he referred to five categories of action in which European officials agreed to invest resources: cyber defense, the co-production of weapons and ammunition in Ukraine, the defense of countries directly threatened by Russia and, in particular, Moldova; the ability to support Ukraine on its border with Belarus and in demining operations.
“We must do more” when it comes to sending military resources to Ukraine, Macron insisted. “There are several options on the table, such as joint debt issuance; the priority of priorities is ammunition, we are determined to reach the end of available stocks,” he added.
The Ukrainian setback
Ukraine has been on the defensive since the failure of a counteroffensive to retake territories occupied by Russia, followed by a sharp decline in the military support it had received until then from the United States and other NATO countries. This allowed Russia to regain the initiative and in recent days conquered the city of Avdiivka, belonging to the eastern Ukrainian province of Donetsk, and nearby towns.
The Russian Army occupied more than 300 square kilometers of Ukrainian territory so far this year, as reported by the Minister of Defense of Russia, Sergei Shoigu, in a meeting with the Armed Forces. “After establishing control over the important enemy stronghold of Avdivka, Russian forces continue to improve their positions in the Donetsk and Kupiansk sectors, take new heights and positions from the Ukrainian Army. Since the beginning of the year, 327 kilometers have been liberated from Nazi forces “he indicated.
Last week the Kremlin also claimed taking of Pobedaa small town about five kilometers west of the city of Donetsk, and the town Krinki, located on the eastern bank of the Dnieper River. “As a result of the intense and determined actions of our military, the war potential of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is reduced. The enemy has lost an average of 800 troops and 120 combat machines, including those of foreign manufacture, every day since the beginning of the year. “Shoigu said.
The Russian Defense Minister also put the number of Ukrainian casualties so far in the war at more than 444,000, a few days after the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, put the number of Ukrainian soldiers killed in the war at 31,000. Saturday marks two years since the war escalation began. “After the failure of the counteroffensive, the Ukrainian Army command is trying to stabilize the situation by sending the remaining reserves to prevent the collapse of the front,” added Shoigu, noting that Russia destroys these with high-precision and long-range weapons. reserves in the Ukrainian rear.