The head of NATO’s Military Committee, Rob Bauer, arrived in Ukraine on Thursday, in his first visit to Kyiv since the start of the Russian invasion in February 2022.
The NATO military leader addressed the Kyiv Security Forum.
“My visit, the first NATO military delegation to visit Ukraine since the large-scale invasion, is a testament to the fact that NATO and Ukraine are more united than ever,” Bauer said.
The admiral also affirmed that his visit allows him to express his admiration for the courage and resilience of Ukrainians, both on and off the battlefield.
“Together, we are putting everything in place for Ukraine to become a member of our Alliance. The Swedish flag will not be the only blue and yellow flag at NATO headquarters,” he added.
“Russia’s war against Ukraine has never revolved around a real threat to security coming from Ukraine or NATO. This war is because President Putin fears something much more powerful than any physical weapon on earth: democracy,” he noted in his speech.
“If people in Ukraine can have democratic rights, real democratic rights, then people in Russia will soon crave them too,” the Dutchman emphasized.
On September 30, 2022, NATO announced that Ukraine had applied for membership through an accelerated process.
The Alliance’s Secretary-General, Jens Stoltenberg, maintains that Ukraine cannot join until active fighting ceases.
