NATO keep a close eye Russia’s nuclear forces. And although its general secretary, Jens Stoltenberghe explained “they have not seen any change in the Kremlin’s position”, the military alliance prefers “stay alert“.
so alert that has refused to cancel the nuclear maneuvers scheduled for next week known as Steadfast Noon. “If we did, we would send a very wrong signal to Moscow“, indicated the Norwegian on the eve of the new meeting with the defense ministers of the member countries this Wednesday.
These are some exercises celebrate annually And they were planned for a long time. However, going ahead with them at a time when Russian President Vladimir Putin has raised the tone of his nuclear threats makes it clear that the military organization is not intimidated for what he considers “dangerous”, “irresponsible” and “reckless” rhetoric.
NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg gives a press conference in Brussels.
Until now, NATO had warned that “there would be serious consequences“if Moscow dares to use atomic weapons in Ukraine, but it had not given details on how the reaction would be. Now, with the decision to continue with nuclear operations in Europe, the Atlantic Alliance is sending to the Russian leader a strong direct message: that it is prepared and that it has the capacity to respond.
It also has weapons, because the Steadfast Noons are intended to rehearse the launch of some of the 150 B61 tactical nuclear bombs that the United States is estimated to have deployed in Europe, according to the Forum for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament. “Russia knows that a nuclear war cannot be won and should never be fought,” Stoltenberg recalled.
[La OTAN realizará ejercicios con armas nucleares tras la amenaza de Putin de usarlas]
G7: “We will hold them accountable”
This announcement comes one day after Russia has massively bombed more than ten Ukrainian cities, targeting the civilian population and critical infrastructure. These brutal attacks, which have left at least 19 dead and hundreds of wounded, have led the Ukrainian president, Volodímir Zelenski, to meet urgently this Tuesday, with the help of the German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, with the Group of Seven (G7).
German Chancellor Scholz attends the virtual meeting of G7 leaders in Berlin.
The leaders of the international forum, made up of Germany, Canada, the United States, France, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom – all of them members of NATO except Japan – have condemned the wave of bombings. “We will hold President Putin and those responsible accountable“, They have assured in a statement after the virtual meeting.
They have also taken the opportunity to reiterate their support for Ukraine and have stated that they will not be intimidated, that the use of chemical, biological or nuclear weapons in Ukraine will have “serious consequences”.
“We remain steadfast in our commitment to providing the support that Ukraine needs to maintain its sovereignty and territorial integrity. We will continue to offer financial, humanitarian, military, diplomatic and legal support all as long as it takes“, has pointed out the G7.
[Putin arrastra a Lukashenko a la guerra: manda soldados al frente pese al alto coste político]
In addition, the members of the group sent a message to belaruswhich has been supporting Moscow since the beginning of the invasion and which announced on Monday that it would begin military exercises alongside the Kremlin forces in the vicinity of kyiv. For this reason, they have urged the Lukashenko regime to “fulfill its obligations in accordance to international law“.
