NATO chief warns against underestimating Russia

The bloc should not misjudge Moscow’s capabilities following the Wagner munity, Jens Stoltenberg has said

NATO members must not underestimate Russia, despite the brief crisis created by the failed mutiny of the Wagner private military company, the bloc’s Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Tuesday.

“We all saw the events in Russia over the last [few] days. These are internal Russian matters,” Stoltenberg said at a press conference in The Hague, arguing that the rebellion was a sign of “new tensions” in the country. 

“At the same time, we must not underestimate Russia,” said the head of the bloc, adding that NATO members will continue to provide military aid to Kiev and send “a clear message of our commitment” at a summit in Lithuania next month.

Stoltenberg told reporters that Ukrainian troops were “making progress” in their counteroffensive, arguing that the more territory Kiev manages to retake, “the stronger their hand will eventually be at the negotiating table.”

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Meanwhile, the Russian Defense Ministry said that Ukrainian forces have failed to breach the defensive lines in Donbass and the Zaporozhye Region, and that Kiev had suffered significant losses in attempting to do so. A significant number of German-made Leopard 2 heavy tanks and US-made Bradley combat vehicles were destroyed or abandoned during Ukraine’s offensive operations this month. 

On Sunday, the New York Times cited US officials as saying that Ukraine had failed to capitalize on the sudden Wagner mutiny. The unrest broke out late on Friday but ended by Saturday evening, when the private military company’s boss Evgeny Prigozhin struck a deal with the authorities. The Wagner fighters have since aborted their march on Moscow and returned to their bases.

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