NATO will stand with Ukraine up to the day in which we will have them sitting around the table for a long-lasting peace, a senior official from the military alliance has told the BBC.
Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, chair of NATO's military committee since January, added from an operational perspective he considered the Russia-Ukraine war was bogged down, and it was almost time to sit and talk because it's a waste of lives.
Pointing to the fact that Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 had resulted in two additional countries joining the Western alliance - Finland and Sweden - Adm Dragone described the war as a strategic failure for Russian President Vladimir Putin, despite recent slow, incremental advances by Russia on the battlefield.
They will not get a friendly or puppet government like in Belarus. Putin will not succeed, he stated.
Asked if European nations were prepared to continue supporting Ukraine's defense, he expressed confidence in their resolve, noting that recent events had spurred them to take more charge of their own defense.
In June, NATO members agreed to raise their defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2035, a move following repeated calls from US President Donald Trump.
On Russia's recent announcement concerning long-range nuclear weapons like the Burevestnik and the Poseidon, the former Italian chief of defense staff asserted that NATO remains a defensive nuclear alliance, downplaying any threats posed. We are not threatened by them, he said, we are just ready to defend our 32 nations and our one billion people. We are a nuclear alliance.
Regarding the risk of future invasions or attacks, Adm Dragone suggested that if such events were to occur, it would likely be in the Baltic states: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. However, he reassured that Article 5 of NATO would be invoked, ensuring a collective defense.
When asked about the US's role in this collective security agreement, he confirmed their commitment, stating, Yes, because they have committed to this and they have underlined that they are still in the business.
Adm Dragone emphasized the priority of air defense as a response to recent incursions by Russian drones into Poland and Romania. The alliance is actively working on a drone wall along NATO's eastern borders to enhance air defense initiatives.
Despite some opposition from a few NATO members regarding continued support for Ukraine, Adm Dragone concluded on an optimistic note about the alliance's stability and cohesiveness. He stated, The alliance is reliable, it is mature, there is a cohesion which is our center of gravity. The alliance is stronger than our adversaries, and we will stay with Ukraine up to the day that peace will break out.\
