NATO Chief Says Support For Ukraine Shows Russia That 'Violence And Intimidation Do Not Pay'

WASHINGTON -- NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has said that the alliance was “putting in place the foundations for Ukraine to prevail” in its effort to defend itself against Russia.

Referring to Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Stoltenberg said on July 11 during his final press conference of the NATO summit that the alliance “cannot and will not allow this to happen again.”

“Violence and intimidation do not pay,” he said.

NATO leaders had come together to make Ukraine “stronger and more capable” and to “build a bridge” for eventual Ukrainian NATO membership,” Stoltenberg said, giving assurances that the alliance would “meet Ukraine’s needs” in the future.

On the last day of the summit, intended to underscore NATO’s support for Kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy pressed NATO leaders to lift all restrictions against Kyiv using their donated weaponry to launch long-range strikes on Russian territory if they want to see Ukraine defeat Russia’s invading forces.

“If we want to win, if we want to prevail, if we want to save our country, and to defend it, we need to lift all the limitations,” Zelenskiy said on July 11 at a press briefing alongside Stoltenberg.

Zelenskiy’s comments came a day after NATO announced a major aid package to support Ukraine’s defense against Russia’s invasion, including the delivery of long-awaited U.S.-made F-16 fighter jets and the provision of $43 billion in military assistance within the next year.

The alliance also stressed Ukraine’s right to defend itself against foreign aggression and to choose its own security arrangements, declaring that Ukraine’s “future is in NATO” and that Kyiv would continue to receive support “on its irreversible path to full Euro-Atlantic integration.”

On July 11, the United States announced it would be sending $225 million worth of military equipment to Ukraine, part of a $61 billion aid package approved in April. The tranche includes a Patriot missile battery, anti-aircraft systems and munitions, as well as artillery ammunition and rockets.

Stoltenberg said in his press conference with Zelenskiy that while Russia has tried “to intimidate us from providing support,” if anything the opposite has happened and NATO allies are “actually stepping up their support for Ukraine.”

Zelenskiy, speaking shortly before he was to participate in a session of the NATO-Ukraine Council, called the aid offered at the summit “a success.” He has repeatedly called on partners to boost Ukraine’s air defenses.

But Zelenskiy stressed that Ukraine needs more control to hit military targets deep inside Russian territory -- specifically, aircraft used to strike Ukraine with glide bombs. Some air bases that house the planes, he said earlier this week, are located up to 500 kilometers from Ukraine’s border.

Prior to the day’s discussions, Andriy Yermak, the head of Zelenskiy’s administration, said that lifting restriction on how Ukraine uses donated weapons would be a “game-changer.”

"It is just impossible to fight when the enemies don't have any restrictions," Yermak told the NATO Public Forum on July 11.

Stoltenberg on July 10 said that Ukraine had the right under international law to defend itself against invading Russian forces, including with strikes against legitimate military targets in Russia.

The issue of how Ukraine uses their donated weaponry is up to individual NATO members to decide. Some have said Kyiv can use them to strike Russian territory, while others have said their donated weapons can only be used within Ukraine.

The United States in early May dropped its ban on Kyiv using U.S. weapons to strike Russian territory. Britain likewise loosened restrictions in early May.

NATO Allies Map Out Commitments To Ukraine, 'Irreversible' Path To Membership

Germany has expressed opposition to allowing the use of NATO-provided weapons to strike inside Russia and has refused to send Ukraine its long-range Taurus cruise missile. Berlin did say in late May, however, that Ukraine could use weapons it supplies to defend itself against strikes from positions just inside Russia.

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis told RFE/RL on May 31 that allies need to change how they are looking at the war in Ukraine and allow Kyiv to use weapons to a fuller extent.

At the NATO summit on July 11, Landsbergis called for the restrictions to be lifted so that Ukraine could strike those targets from where Russia is firing into Ukraine.

When asked by journalists if he agreed to lifting restrictions, German Chancellor Olah Scholz said there have been no changes to Berlin’s position.

U.S. President Joe Biden, in a meeting with Zelenskiy earlier in the day, said he was pleased to announce the new aid allocation.

"We will stay with you, period," Biden said ahead of bilateral talks.

In a subsequent statement announcing the aid package, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that “as President Biden has made clear, the United States and the international coalition we have assembled will continue to stand with Ukraine.”

White House national-security adviser Jake Sullivan, speaking to reporters on the sideline of the summit, said that Ukraine's position on the battlefield had improved since the aid package was passed in April.

Sullivan said that Russia is "grinding away and not breaking through," suffering significant casualties in the meantime. However, he warned the days ahead for Ukraine “will be difficult."

SEE ALSO: Beijing Sends Message To NATO With Chinese-Belarusian Military Drills On Alliance's Eastern Flank

A joint declaration issued by NATO leaders on July 10 in which it called China a "decisive enabler" of Russia's war effort received a sharp rebuke from Beijing.

In response to the declaration, which also said China posed systemic challenges to transatlantic security, Beijing on July 11 accused NATO of spreading false information and undermining cooperation between China and Europe.

NATO has acted on its concerns by showing increased interest in forming bonds with four Indo-Pacific countries -- Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea -- whose leaders were scheduled to meet with NATO leaders on July 11 to discuss security challenges and cooperation.

Stoltenberg highlighted the meeting in his news conference on July 10, telling reporters that the NATO leaders agreed to continue to strengthen their partnerships, especially in the Indo-Pacific, amid rising concerns that China might attack Taiwan and worries about Russia's stepped-up security ties with China and a nuclear-armed North Korea.

“In this dangerous world, friends and partners are more important than ever, so today we agreed to continue to strengthen our partnerships, especially in the Indo-Pacific. Security is global; it’s not regional. [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s war is fueled by those who do not share our values,” he said.

Iran and North Korea are providing direct military support to Russia, while China is propping up Russia’s war economy, he added.