NATO plans to provide Ukraine with defense equipment against Russian attacks with chemical, biological or nuclear weapons. The ‘Kiev’ alliance also wants to send extra aid to defend itself against cyber attacks.
“We are concerned about the use of chemical and biological weapons,” Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Wednesday at a press conference ahead of an scheduled summit of the 30 NATO heads of government in Brussels. “The use of chemical weapons would completely change the nature of the conflict,” he said, “with far-reaching consequences.”
Stoltenberg also called on Russia to immediately cease threatening nuclear weapons. “Russia must stop this dangerous and irresponsible nuclear rhetoric. […] Russia must understand that it can never win a nuclear war.” Stoltenberg pointed out that Russia itself has often endorsed this. On Tuesday, Putin’s spokesman declined to rule out the use of nuclear weapons.
NATO member states have been supplying Ukraine with conventional weapons for weeks. It is the first time that materials for protection against weapons of mass destruction were also discussed. Stoltenberg declined to say exactly what it was about.
Georgia and Bosnia and Herzegovina
The heads of government will also consider the vulnerable position of Georgia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. Ukraine benefits not only from recent arms shipments from the West, but also from the training Ukrainian military personnel have received since the annexation of Crimea. “That’s an important lesson,” Stoltenberg said, considering the countries that also feel threatened. According to the secretary general, NATO countries have trained tens of thousands of Ukrainian military personnel since 2014.
The alliance has not only helped Ukraine, but also improved the defenses of the eastern member states. The eastern flank is defended by forty thousand soldiers who temporarily fall directly under the command of the NATO commander in chief. The US has 100,000 soldiers in Europe, hundreds of thousands more soldiers in Europe are on alert, 130 planes are permanently in action (or on standby) and 140 ships are patrolling.
Originally, almost no NATO soldiers were stationed in Eastern European countries. That was agreed with Russia. After the annexation of Crimea, four internationally composed battlegroups were stationed in the Baltic countries and Poland. Those combat groups have been provided and groups are being added in Hungary, Slovakia, Romania and Bulgaria. In the coming months, NATO will be working on proposals to permanently strengthen defenses in all military domains.
A version of this article also appeared in NRC on the morning of March 24, 2022