NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Tuesday that for the time being they have not seen any de-escalation on the ground following Russia informed that he was going to withdraw some of the troops concentrated alongside Ukraine, but might even be increasing those forces.
“We have heard signals from Moscow regarding its willingness to continue diplomatic efforts, but so far we have not seen any de-escalation on the ground; on the contrary, it seems that Russia continues with the military reinforcementStoltenberg told reporters upon arrival at a meeting of allied defense ministers.
He insisted that the messages and signals that arrived on Tuesday from Moscow “provide some reason for cautious optimism” because it was a message in favor of “diplomacy”. “But at the same time, we haven’t seen any withdrawal of Russian forces, and of course that contradicts the message of real diplomatic efforts, so it remains to be seen if there is a Russian withdrawal. We are, of course, monitoring very closely what what Russia does in and around Ukraine,” he said.
He reiterated that what the Alliance sees is that Moscow “has increased the number of troops and that more troops are on the way“So for now there is no de-escalation, but of course we also heard the message on diplomacy and we are prepared to engage in diplomatic efforts with Russia,” he said.
In any case, he said that if Russia “really” begins to withdraw forces, NATO “will welcome” that step, but stressed that “it remains to be seen” if the de-escalation is going to take place. “They have always moved troops from one place to anotherso seeing movements of forces or tanks does not confirm a real withdrawal,” he said, adding that the “trend in recent months and weeks has been a steady increase in Russian capabilities near Ukraine’s borders.”
Therefore, he specified that Moscow “maintains the capability of a full-fledged invasion of Ukraine without any warning”, and explained that what has been seen in recent months is that Russia withdraws most of its troops from a specific area, but leaves the equipment there, with which “very quickly they can send personnel back “. “What we need is a withdrawal of forces that is lasting and real, not to move troops,” explained the secretary general, and showed that if Moscow invades Ukraine, Russia “will pay a high price.”
Asked if the Kremlin’s messages in favor of diplomacy are a tactic to buy time and continue concentrating troops, Stoltenberg preferred “not to speculate.” “We see a message from Moscow that will give diplomacy a chance“, he declared, adding that NATO is “working hard for the best, a peaceful political solution”, but is “prepared for the worst”, referring to a new Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Stoltenberg indicated that the Alliance has not received a response to the written proposals on security in Europe that the organization sent to Russia in January, in parallel with the United States. Those letters were in response to Russian demands that NATO not accept members like Ukraine, a proposal that the Alliance completely rejects, although it is willing to talk with Moscow regarding arms control or transparency of military activities.
The Norwegian politician said that the decision on Ukraine’s entry into NATO rests with the thirty allies and not to Russia.
