Stoltenberg: No plans for NATO troops in Ukraine
NATO has no plans to send military troops to Ukraine to support the country in the war against Russia. This is what the defense alliance's Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg tells AP.
The statement comes after French President Emmanuel Macron said he did not rule out the West sending ground troops to Ukraine. Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico has also claimed that several EU and NATO countries are considering sending troops.
Stoltenberg says NATO countries have supported Ukraine since 2014 and that support has increased after the full-scale invasion in 2022.
- But there are no plans for NATO troops on the ground in Ukraine, he tells the news agency.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the Financial Times that a war between NATO and Russia would be inevitable if NATO sends ground troops to Ukraine.
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Macron does not rule out ground troops: All that is required
French President Emmanuel Macron says it cannot be ruled out that the West will send ground troops to Ukraine, AP reports.
- We will do everything necessary so that Russia cannot win the war, Macron said during a meeting with 20 European heads of state and government in Paris on Monday.
At the same time, the French president was careful to underline that there is disagreement on the issue at the moment.
During the meeting, the possibilities of buying ammunition from countries outside the EU and sending it to Ukraine were also discussed. France and other nations have previously opposed using EU funds for the purpose and argued that the money should instead go to building up the Union's own industries.
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Kristersson: Not current with troops "at all"
Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson (M) tells SVT's Morgonstudion that it is "not relevant at all right now" to send troops to Ukraine.
The statement comes after French President Emmanuel Macron said it is not out of the question that the West will send ground troops to Ukraine to support the country in its war against Russia.
Kristersson says that Sweden is currently busy sending resources and material to Ukraine. He adds that different countries are differently committed to other countries and that he respects that France wants to help.
- France's tradition is not the Swedish tradition, says Kristersson.
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NATO process Sweden's application
Expert: Competent fleet - the problem is size
The Swedish armed forces are incredibly high-tech, competent and capable. That's what Oscar Jonsson, PhD in military science at the Norwegian Defense Academy, tells The Telegraph.
The newspaper has reviewed Swedish defense capabilities in light of the fact that Hungary was the last country to approve Sweden's NATO application yesterday. Sweden has a strong fleet, but there is a significant obstacle, says Jonsson.
- The biggest problem is the size, he says and continues:
- As the war [in Ukraine] has shown, everything we thought was enough was not even close to being so.
Sweden has increased its spending on defense in recent years, notes The Telegraph. NATO requires each member state to spend at least 2 percent of GDP on defense.
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