NATO, US believe Russia-Ukraine war will end only at negotiating table

Amid the ongoing relentless war between Russia and Ukraine, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and US believed that the conflict would end only at the negotiating table but added the war-ravaged country must have the strength to defend themselves at peace talks. The "speculation statement" came when US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg were holding a joint press conference in Washington DC on Wednesday. According to the joint statement, the present situation on the battleground will decide the future of the next generations.

Responding to how NATO has been working to stop the ongoing brutal war, the NATO chief affirmed that the "wars are unpredictable" and added there are no ways to solve them unless countries sit together at the negotiating table. "I will just say that wars are unpredictable. We were able to predict the invasion, but how this war will evolve is very hard to predict. What we do know is that almost all wars end at some stage at the negotiating table. And this has also been clearly stated by President Zelenskyy that at some stage this will end at the negotiating table," he said.

Stoltenberg, however, acknowledged that the NATO allies need to support Ukraine so that the war-embattled country could manage to act in self-defence.  "But what happens there at the negotiating table is, of course, totally dependent on the strength, the situation, on the battlefield. And that's what we do, we support them and uphold the right for self-defence," added the NATO chief. Further, Stoltenberg maintained that he was in contact with the Turkish President over his concerns regarding Sweden and Finland joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. The NATO chief stated that he will meet with the officials of Sweden, Finland and Turkey in Brussels in the coming days.

Russia ready to negotiate, says Upper House Speaker

Earlier on Tuesday, Moscow's upper parliament house speaker said Russia is ready to hold negotiations with Kyiv to restore peace in the region. The major development came as Speaker Valentina Matviyenko, who was on an official visit to Mozambique, met Maputo's President Filipe Nyusi on Tuesday. Speaking at the meeting, Russian News Agency- TASS, reported that the speaker said the Putin administration is open to talks with Ukraine and signing agreements that would lead to peace. She said that the Russian government is ready to solve the issue diplomatically and added a will for this is needed on both sides. However, she claimed that the Zelenskyy administration has shown no interest in resolving the issue.   

Image: AP