Vladimir Putin thought “lazy” NATO would give up on Ukraine, the alliance’s chief claimed today.
Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg railed against the Russian tyrant following a meeting of coalition foreign ministers in Oslo.
Mr Stoltenberg said: “I believe that in Moscow they think that democracies are lazy, that we are not ready to stand by Ukraine for as long as it takes - and we are going to prove the opposite by demonstrating that democracies are actually able to stand up for their values and be there when they are needed to defend democracy and freedom, as we do when we support Ukraine.”
He added: “Putin cannot wait us out.”
Former Norwegian Prime Minister Mr Stoltenberg said the military alliance would discuss plans to boost support for Kyiv when leaders hold their annual summit in Lithuanian capital Vilnius next month.
“We all agree that the most important thing now is to ensure that Ukraine prevails as a sovereign and independent state,” he said.
“We don’t know when the war ends but we must ensure that when it does we have credible arrangements in place to guarantee Ukraine’s security in the future and to break Russia’s cycle of aggression.”
Mr Stoltenberg insisted the “first and most important thing for Ukraine is to ensure that they win this war”.
He added: “At the Vilnius summit next month, I am absolutely certain that the main focus will be on how to sustain and step-up concrete military support to Ukraine with equipment, with ammunition, with spare parts, with everything they need to be able to liberate more land.”
A Western official confirmed Kyiv still intended to press ahead with its much-anticipated counter-offensive.
“Our assessment would be that, yes, the counter-offensive is coming,” they said.
“That is still very much the Ukrainians’ intent.”
The source believed President Volodymyr Zelensky’s regime had tried to set the ground for its assault on Kremlin forces.
“Russia has been scrambling over the last few days to counter a range of threats which appears to constitute a coherent attempt to shape the battlefield in Ukraine’s favour before any counter-offensive,” they said.
The official revealed Russia had suffered “at least” 60,000 casualties in the year-long Battle for Bakhmut, with an estimated 20,000 killed and the rest wounded.
They compared the fight to First World War trench warfare.
“The enormity impact of 60,000 casualties in Bakhmut - I guess where I’d start from to bring it to life is back to this question of in 2023 having a year-long battle which is essentially World War One, where we've seen waves in infantry, in many cases unsupported by combined arms, going up against defensive positions and in many cases literally being mown down,” they said.
However, Ukrainian forces have pulled out of the “main built up area of the town”, the official added.
* Follow Mirror Politics on Snapchat, Tiktok, Twitter and Facebook
