During a speech at a German Marshall Fund event on Sept. 19, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg reiterated his support for further providing Western-made weaponry to Ukraine, noting that additional deliveries will continue to help Ukraine push back against Russian aggression on the battlefield.
"The paradox is that the more weapons for Ukraine we are able to deliver, the more likely it is that we can reach a peace and end to the war," Stoltenberg said. "The more credible our long-term military support, the sooner the war will end."
Stoltenberg's comments come amid intensified rhetoric and saber-rattling from Russian President Vladimir Putin and various Russian officials.
Russia has repeatedly attempted to draw "red lines" in recent months as Western countries contemplate allowing Ukraine to use Western long-range missiles to strike deep within Russian territory.
While many NATO allies have responded by reassuring Ukraine of its support with the delivery of weapons, other political leaders have opposed additional weapons deliveries, and have instead called for negotiations with Moscow.
During his speech on Sept. 19, Stoltenberg rebuffed the notion of sustained peace without adequate support for Ukraine, stating that "any future deal must be backed by strong military support to Ukraine."
"We all want this war to end. The quickest way to end the war is to lose it. But that will not bring peace. It will bring Russian occupation."
Stoltenberg's comments on additional weapons deliveries come just days after the outgoing NATO chief said that the bloc could have provided Ukraine with more arms to prevent Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine
"Now we provide military stuff to a war — then we could have provided military stuff to prevent the war," Stoltenberg told the German newspaper FAS on Sept. 14.
Stoltenberg has consistently urged NATO allies to increase defense spending amid risks of fracturing among the alliance.
During the recent NATO summit in Washington, the alliance clarified Ukraine's "irreversible" path toward NATO by emphasizing the alliance's ongoing commitments to Kyiv "constitute a bridge to Ukraine's membership."
On Sept. 19, Stoltenberg doubled down on his past statement on, adding that there can be "no lasting security for Ukraine, without NATO membership."
"NATO’s door is open. Ukraine will join," Stoltenberg concluded.
Nate Ostiller
