NATO softens criticism of Russia in summit's final declaration - media
Kyiv • UNN
NATO allies have agreed to tone down criticism of Russia in a statement to be signed by leaders, according to a leak to The Telegraph.
NATO allies have agreed to soften criticism of Russia in a statement to be signed by leaders, according to a leak seen by The Telegraph, UNN writes.
Details
The wording in the summit communiqué, which was significantly shorter than usual for Donald Trump, reportedly "appears weaker compared to previous years."
In the statement, the 32 NATO members "reaffirm their unwavering sovereign commitment to support Ukraine, whose security contributes to ours, and to that end will include direct contributions to Ukraine's defense and its defense industry when calculating allies' defense spending."
In a statement issued after last year's summit in Washington, NATO blamed the war on "Russia's full-scale invasion" and insisted that "Ukraine's future is in NATO."
At the 2023 summit in Vilnius, leaders said: "Russia bears full responsibility for its illegal, unjustified and unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine."
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has insisted on Western support for further condemnation of Russia's invasion on the sidelines of the summit, the publication writes.
Donald Trump has refused to sign a similar international statement, as he fears it will disrupt his peace talks with Vladimir Putin, the publication notes.
The statement to be signed by NATO leaders in The Hague is said to be less than 10 percent of the size of last year's communiqué in Washington.
It was deliberately made short and concise to focus on Donald Trump's main concern about defense spending, the publication writes.
The communiqué contained just over 400 words compared to more than 5,000 in Washington, the publication notes.
Rutte: NATO summit to discuss support for Ukraine25.06.25, 10:28 • 2460 views