Jens Stoltenberg: NATO could have done more to prevent war in Ukraine

He could have done more to equip Ukraine to try to prevent the Russian invasion in 2022, said . “Now we provide military material in a war – then we could have given military material to prevent the war in Ukraine,” NATO Secretary General Gens Stoltenberg told the German newspaper FAS. Stoltenberg demonstrated NATO’s reluctance to offer weapons, which Kiev had requested before the Russian invasion due to fears of escalation of tension with Russia. After the outbreak of the war, Kiev, which is not NATO, received weapons systems from its allies after initial hesitations. Stoltenberg, former Prime Minister of Norway, will leave his NATO position in October, a post he has held since 2014. Former Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rute will succeed him, as announced in June. In the interview, Stoltenberg said the end of the war in Ukraine would only be achieved at the negotiating table. “To end this war, there must again be dialogue with Russia at some point. But it should be based on Ukrainian power,” he said.