Days after Wagner’s short-lived mutiny in southern Russia as the group of mercenaries marched toward Moscow, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters in Lithuania, “I think what we’re seeing in Russia over the last days demonstrates the fragility of the [Russian] regime, and, of course, it is a demonstration of weakness.”
In an NBC News interview that was published Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky targeted former President Donald Trump and attacked his vow to negotiate an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine. Zelensky argued that if Russia is not defeated in Ukraine, then Moscow will attack or invade another NATO member state and force the U.S. and the alliance into a direct conflict with Russia.
The Biden administration made it clear in May that Washington would not prevent its allies from providing F-16 fighter jets to Kyiv, which would be a move widely seen as highly escalatory and one that could lead to direct conflict between NATO and Russia. However, it has also been largely understood that training Ukrainian pilots to fly Western combat aircraft could take at least a year, if not longer.
As NATO’s summit approaches, former NATO Secretary-General Anders Rasmussen has warned that some of the alliance’s Eastern European states are considering sending their troops to Ukraine if NATO does not make substantial pledges to Ukraine during the summit.
At the request of Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, the Danish Parliament canceled a major public holiday to financially support its commitments to NATO and the war in Ukraine. The decision was widely criticized and resulted in public protests against the move.
Despite the recent fall of the eastern city of Bakhmut to Russian and Wagner forces, Ukrainian officials still insist that they will “get back what’s ours,” according to top military officer, Gen. Valerii Zaluzhnyi. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is reiterating the same message claiming that “we strongly believe that we will succeed.”
Poland and Norway have joined the ever-expanding faction of NATO countries that are willing to begin training Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets. The countries’ willingness comes after President Joe Biden gave his approval at last week’s G7 summit in Japan for Europeans to send Western fighters to Ukraine. The policy change occurred after months of debate inside the administration.