NATO defense leaders met in Brussels on Wednesday and cemented their support for Ukraine, focusing on how they can get additional air defense systems and other weapons to Ukraine as quickly as possible.
The Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting, which Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is chairman of, is the sixth such meeting following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last February.
“The whole world has just seen yet again the malice and cruelty of Putin’s war of choice rooted in aggression and waged with deep contempt for the rules of war,” Austin said while addressing reporters before the meeting. “Russia’s latest barrage against Ukraine’s cities has again killed and wounded innocent civilians and put targets with no military purpose in the crosshairs.”
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The meeting “underscores the resolve of the international community to support Ukraine’s self-defense after Russia’s cruel and unprovoked invasion, and that resolve has only been heightened by the deliberate cruelty of Russia’s new barrage against Ukraine,” he said after the meeting.
Wednesday’s meeting came just two days after Russia launched its most intense air assault against Ukraine since the beginning of the war. At least 19 people were killed, energy facilities were targeted, and the United Nations warned that it appeared Russian forces intentionally targeted civilian infrastructure.
Ukrainian forces were able to intercept about half of the missiles from Russian forces, highlighting the need for more air defense systems.
National Security Council coordinator John Kirby told reporters on Tuesday that the council is looking to expedite the shipping of National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems to Ukraine.
“We think that we’re on track to get those first two over there in the very near future,” Kirby said during a briefing for reporters. “We are certainly interested in expediting the delivery of NASAMS to Ukraine as soon as we can.”
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NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said during a Tuesday press conference, “I welcome the recent announcements by allies to provide more advanced air defense systems and other capabilities to Ukraine, and I look forward to further deliveries. … Our message is clear. NATO stands with Ukraine for as long as it takes. President Putin started this war. He must end it by withdrawing his forces from Ukraine.”
The United States has already provided Ukraine with more than $16.8 billion worth of security assistance since Russia invaded.
