NATO refuses to install missile shield in Ukraine's skies
(Baonghean.vn) - This is the response of the head of the military alliance, given after Kiev asked Western countries to support it in shooting down Russian missiles.
According to RT, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg affirmed that the military bloc has no intention of using its air defense systems to shield Ukraine. His statement was made a few days after Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky called on the US and its allies to shoot down Russian missiles.
Speaking to the New York Times last week, President Zelensky said he saw no problem with such NATO involvement, arguing that it would not amount to an “attack on Russia.”
“Are you shooting down a Russian plane and killing a Russian pilot? No,” he argued. President Zelensky also pointed out that the US and UK shot down Iranian missiles and drones flying towards Israel last month. However, both Washington and London have argued that the two scenarios are not comparable.
In an interview with Germany's Welt am Sonntag newspaper published on May 25, Mr. Stoltenberg said: "While we are increasing support for Ukraine's defense, there are no plans to send NATO troops to Ukraine or to extend NATO's air defense shield to Ukraine."
The head of the military bloc affirmed: "NATO will not participate in the conflict".
He also argued that Kiev could still regain the upper hand, although Russia now appears to have it. To ensure this, he argued, NATO member states should “send more weapons and ammunition to Ukraine, including air defense systems and long-range weapons.”
On May 22, Polish Foreign Ministry spokesman Pawel Wronski told Ukrainian media that his country was considering “from a legal and technical point of view” the possibility of using its air defense system to shoot down Russian missiles on Ukrainian territory. However, the senior diplomat quickly added that no decision had been made yet.
Earlier, some opposition parties in Germany also announced their support for this idea. However, Chancellor Olaf Scholz rejected the proposal to establish a “no-fly zone” enforced by NATO over Ukraine, calling it reckless and dangerous.
The prime minister stressed that while it is important to continue supporting Kiev, neither Germany, the EU nor NATO should become a party to the conflict and should not be asked to do so, as such a development could provoke an “unpredictable reaction” from Moscow.
Russian officials have repeatedly said that supplying weapons, sharing intelligence and training Ukrainian troops means Western nations have effectively become parties to the conflict.
