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| NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg in Washington. |
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg considered this Thursday that we must be prepared for a "long war of attrition" in Ukraine that can only end, he said, at a negotiating table.
Speaking at the White House after meeting with US President Joe Biden, Stoltenberg said that it is up to Ukraine alone to decide whether to cede territories if the time comes to negotiate and that NATO's obligation is to help that country defend its sovereignty...
On Turkey's opposition to the entry into NATO of Sweden and Finland, he stressed that when an alliance member expresses his concerns, he must be listened to, address those concerns and find a solution from "unity".
He added that Turkey is an important ally that contributes to the security of the alliance "in many different ways", noting that it maintains close contacts both with Ankara and with the governments of the two candidate countries.
Biden support
For his part, Biden said on social networks that he received Stoltenberg at the White House to "talk about the next Madrid Summit", which will be held at the end of the month, where the allies will address "the strengthening of NATO" and new challenges. such as cyber-attacks or the climate crisis.
In a statement after the meeting, the White House reported that Biden conveyed to Stoltenberg "strong support" for the secretary general's efforts to facilitate "a rapid accession" of Sweden and Finland to NATO, an issue that is expected to be addressed in the top.
Stoltenberg already announced on Wednesday, after meeting with the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, that he intends to call a meeting in Brussels with representatives of Sweden, Finland, and Turkey in the coming days to resolve Ankara's veto on the entry of the Nordic countries to the Atlantic Alliance.
And he assured that his intention is for the meeting to take place before the NATO summit to be held at the end of the month in Madrid.
"A High Price"
The head of NATO acknowledged that Ukraine is paying a "high price" for defending its country, but Russia is also suffering "high losses."
And when asked by the press, he did not want to speculate on the transfers that Ukraine may have to make to Russia if the time comes to negotiate.
"It is up to them to make those tough decisions, our obligation is to support them. It is not up to us to decide what Ukraine should accept or not. We should help them," he said.