Russia will ‘fail’ in its objectives in Ukraine, NATO chief says

Moscow will “fail” in achieving its objectives in its deadly invasion of Ukraine, NATO’s secretary-general says.

But Jens Stoltenberg told the Ottawa Conference on Security and Defence that the Russian invasion has “shattered” peace in Europe and the transatlantic alliance must prepare for a “dark time” ahead.

“Whatever happens in the months ahead, whatever Moscow seeks to achieve through violence and aggression, it will fail. It is failing already,” Stoltenberg said via videoconference.

“President (Vladimir) Putin wants less NATO on Russia’s borders, but he’s getting more NATO. He wants to divide Europe and North America. But we stand more united than ever. He wants to hold European nations hostage with Russian oil and gas and is instead pushing countries to diversify their supplies and move even faster to a renewable future.”

While Stoltenberg projected confidence in the NATO alliance, however, it is and will remain Ukrainians who are facing the brunt of Russian artillery and siege tactics.

The Kremlin has maintained that its invasion of Ukraine is a “special operation” meant to disarm the country and unseat its leadership, and claims to not be targeting civilians. But images of shattered villages and besieged cities continue to flood out of the conflict as the number of Ukrainians fleeing the war continues to rise.

On Wednesday, the Ukrainians accused Russia of levelling a children’s hospital in Mariupol, a town that has faced heavy bombardment in recent days. The Kremlin denied the claim, insisting that Russian forces do not target civilians.

But the International Committee of the Red Cross said the people of Mariupol are fast running out of electricity, heat, food and drinking water – a situation a Red Cross spokesperson described as “apocalyptic.”

Mariupol is just one front of an invasion that is now stretching into its third week, which has displaced millions of people and killed tens of thousands more. But the strong resistance from the outgunned and outmanned Ukrainian military has dashed Putin’s hopes of a quick victory.

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A Ukrainian interior ministry advisor was quoted by Reuters Wednesday saying Russia was desperate for some kind of gains, with Mariupol or Kyiv the most likely targets.

“They need at least some victory before they are forced into the final negotiations,” the news agency quoted Vadym Denysenko saying.

“Therefore our task is to stand for the next seven-10 days.”

Stoltenberg praised Canada’s role in the diplomatic efforts to impose a cost on Putin’s invasion, as well as the country’s contributions to NATO security – particularly in Latvia, where the Canadian Armed Forces has hundreds of personnel stationed as part of the alliance’s Operation Reassurance.

But when asked about NATO allies’ 2014 commitment to spend at least two per cent of GDP on defence – a target Canada has not yet reached – Stoltenberg said that he’s encouraging all NATO allies to do more in the face of an increasingly belligerent Russia.

“Canada is contributing in many ways and I also welcome the announcements of further support and Canadian contributions,” Stoltenberg said.

“But then, of course, I would like to see all allies to do even more. And therefore I call on all allies to step up and I welcome the message from Prime Minister Trudeau that in light of the Russian brutal invasion of Ukraine, Canada will also assess the need for further increases in defence spending.”

Stoltenberg said NATO members must adapt to a “new reality, a new security environment” in the wake of the conflict in Ukraine – addressing not only Russia’s invasion, but what he sees as a direct challenge from Moscow for sovereign nations to decide their membership in the NATO alliance.

He said Putin’s demand that NATO remove troops and infrastructure from European countries that joined the alliance after 1997 – which would be 14 out of the 30 member nations – would create a “second class” membership from the defensive alliance.

When asked what this “new normal” looks like, Stoltenberg pointed to increased political and military cooperation between Russia and China.

“So we have two authoritarian powers which are challenging the rules-based order, who are openly against our core values – freedom of speech, freedom of expression, democracy, the rule of law – and are also oppressing those values in Hong Kong and in Ukraine and in many other countries,” Stoltenberg said.

“This is the new normal. This is the challenge we have to step up to, and that’s exactly what we’ll do. Europe and North America are standing together.”