The war in Ukraine can be ended at the negotiating table, but Ukrainians must be able to defend themselves to strengthen their position at peace talks, NATO and US officials said.
At a joint news conference in Washington, DC today, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the situation on the battlefield will affect how future negotiations will unfold.
“Wars are unpredictable,” Stoltenberg told reporters. “We were able to predict the invasion, but how this war will evolve, it’s very hard to predict. What we do know is that almost all wars end at some stage at the negotiating table.”
He added that NATO is supporting Ukraine’s right to self-defence while trusting the leadership in Kyiv to make its own judgement on talks with Moscow. Blinken echoed Stoltenberg’s remarks, according to Al-Jazeera.
“What we’re working to do … is to make sure that the Ukrainians have in hand what they need to defend against this aggression, to repel it and push it back,” he said. “And as well, and as a result, to make sure that they have the strongest possible hand at any negotiating table that emerges.”
