Jens Stoltenberg: Western tanks for Ukraine are not to provoke, but to prevent conflict
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told the BBC that the agreement to send dozens of modern tanks to Ukraine would be crucial. According to him, the tanks will significantly extend the strength of the Ukrainian army, helping it repel Russian attacks and liberate territories.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for the tanks to be delivered quickly and in sufficient numbers. Russia described the promise of Western tanks as a dangerous escalation, which Jens Stoltenberg denied.
"It must reduce the risk of escalation beyond Ukraine, of a war between Russia and NATO in Europe, which would be devastating, causing far more damage and death than we have already seen in Ukraine. And that is precisely why NATO has significantly increased its presence in the east, to send a clear message to Moscow that if an ally is an ally, the entire alliance will be there to defend it. This is deterrence, its aim is not to provoke conflict but to prevent conflict, to preserve peace in the NATO alliance", stated the head of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg.
