NATO chief vows to provide aid to Ukraine; comments on Finland & Sweden's membership bid

Amid the brutal Russia-Ukraine war, the Secretary-General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Jens Stoltenberg stated that NATO has taken decisions by consensus, and all NATO partners should have to agree to Sweden and Finland's Alliance membership proposal. He also emphasised that the alliance is dedicated to supplying weapons to Ukraine to help it fight invading Russian forces.

On June 16, talking about Finland and Sweden's NATO membership bid, Stoltenberg said that he cannot provide a specific date for when the two Baltic nations would be legally admitted into the Alliance as NATO has been waiting to resolve Turkey's genuine concerns about terrorism and arms supply to extremist elements like the PKK, as per media reports.  

Further, it is pertinent to mention that after decades of military non-alignment, both countries applied to join NATO earlier, last month. The circumstances altered dramatically when Russia attacked Ukraine on February 24, as per Sweden's Prime Minister. Notably, last week, NATO chief Stoltenberg accepted Sweden's and Finland's membership applications, despite worries that Russia was planning to threaten the Nordic nations.

Turkey, which had previously warned to impede Sweden and Finland's intentions, however, stymied the US-backed military alliance's initial phase. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan asked Turkey's NATO partners to recognise and support Ankara's security concerns. He stated, "We see that there is no such attitude towards us." 

NATO promises military aid to Ukraine

Apart from this, the NATO chief stated that the alliance is dedicated to supplying armaments to war-torn Ukraine which are necessary to protect the country's right to self-defense against Russian military aggression. NATO's top official denounced Russia's constant "war of attrition" on Ukraine while stating that NATO continues to provide unprecedented assistance so that Ukraine can defend itself against Russia. 

On Wednesday, Stoltenberg urged countries to give additional weaponry and soldiers to Ukraine in order to thwart Russia's plan to annex Donbas. He stated that Ukraine has already received billions of dollars in military equipment, as well as financial and humanitarian help from its allies and partners. He did admit, though, that Ukraine requires a large number of deadly and long-range weaponry to prevent Russia's assault. 

'Finland and Sweden joining NATO would not improve security in Europe': Russia

Meanwhile, according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, Finland and Sweden joining NATO would not improve security in Europe, but would instead cause "additional tension."

"We are sure that the membership of Finland and Sweden in NATO won’t bring any additional benefits to the security of the European continent. On the other hand, it will bring additional tension," Peskov said, during an interview with CNN. 

Even Russian President Vladimir Putin had warned earlier, during a conference of the Collective Security Treaty Organization in Moscow that if NATO extended to Finland and Sweden, Russia would retaliate. The participation of Finland and Sweden in NATO, however, does not constitute an imminent threat to Russia, according to the Kremlin. 

(Image: AP/@SannaMarin/Instagram)