NATO warns that Putin is not looking for a peaceful solution and assumes many casualties in his offensive in Donbas

The NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, has warned this Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin is not willing to sit down and negotiate a peaceful solution to the war in Ukraine, stressing that he continues to aspire to control the neighboring country and to do so it is willing to take heavy casualties in its offensive in the Donbas region.

"We do not see any sign that Putin is prepared for peace, or to negotiate anything that respects the sovereignty and integrity of Ukraine," said the former Norwegian prime minister at a press conference prior to the meeting of defense ministers on Tuesday. and Wednesday in Brussels.

On the other hand, the Allied Secretary General has assured that Moscow continues with its military plans to control Ukraine and has affirmed that the Russian Army is already immersed in a new offensive. "He is mobilizing thousands and thousands of more troops, accepting a very high number of casualties, suffering heavy losses, but putting pressure on the Ukrainians," he said of the upsurge in fighting in eastern Ukraine.

In this sense, he has accused the Russian president of escalating the conflict in eastern Ukraine by using his troops as cannon fodder and assuming a high human price in his offensives. "What they lack in quality they make up for in quantity. Their equipment and training is not at the same level as Ukraine's but they are stronger and are willing to bear that price," he assured.

For all these reasons, Stoltenberg has stressed that military aid to Ukraine must arrive as soon as possible, insisting that the allies must address Kiev's urgent needs since the speed at which it supplies this material "will save lives."

"It is urgent to provide Ukraine with more weapons. The faster we can deliver weapons, ammunition, spare parts, fuel to the Ukrainian front, the more lives we will save and the better we will support efforts to find a peaceful and negotiated solution to this conflict," he defended, al He has long spoken of "a logistics race", in which it is essential that ammunition and spare parts reach Ukraine before Russia "can seize the initiative on the battlefield".

After pointing out that the allies mobilize unprecedented aid for Ukraine, which has depleted military reserves in Europe and North America, the Scandinavian politician has stressed the need to invest more to scale the capacity of the arms industry. "The lead time for large caliber ammunition has increased from 12 to 28 months. Orders placed today will be delivered within two and a half years," he stressed.

"We need to produce more, to be able to deliver enough ammunition to Ukraine, but at the same time, make sure we have enough to protect and defend all NATO allies," he said, insisting on multi-year contracts with the Defense sector, in such a way as to ensure the replenishment of reserves while supporting Kiev. "We are on the right track," she has indicated.

For their part, allied sources point out the need for NATO to establish a concrete plan and collaborate with the EU to develop the defense industry in Europe, as well as encourage joint purchases. This question is rooted in the effort of the European bloc to consolidate its defense industry and not just be a mere client of the US military industry.