World Jul 11, 2023
NATO head eyes 'strong message' on Ukraine's membership bid at summit
Divisions among the Western military alliance's 31 members on allowing Ukraine in mean there will not be a straightforward invitation for Kyiv to join.
Divisions among the Western military alliance's 31 members on allowing Ukraine in mean there will not be a straightforward invitation for Kyiv to join.
With Europe's bloodiest war since 1945 raging just beyond its borders, the alliance is warning it must have all planning in place well before potential conflict with a peer adversary.
Planners from the Baltics to Romania are scrutinizing potential military reinforcement routes, planning to fortify bridges and adding military transport functions to civilian airports.
The incident underlines the urgent need for NATO to plug gaps in its defenses because even mistakes like this could lead to a dangerous escalation.
The talks came two days after Russian air missile strikes killed 19 people in Ukraine and knocked out power supplies across the country.
The confusion underlines how Russia's invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24 has caught Berlin on the back foot, revealing how starkly ill-equipped it is for military action.
An emboldened Moscow could encircle NATO's new Baltic members, cutting them off from the alliance — if a new Iron Curtain is to fall, NATO needs to ensure its members are not behind it.
Moscow's invasion of Ukraine has inadvertently achieved what Western allies have long struggled with — getting Germany to push an assertive foreign policy backed by a strong military.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine looks designed to take Kyiv and create a land corridor south to the Black Sea, splitting the country into two, military analysts and former officials said.
NATO would be likely to reinforce its troop presence in the Black Sea and the Baltics while fending off cyberattacks if Russia were to invade Ukraine, diplomats and former officials said.