NATO speaks with one voice: Russia should choose diplomacy, aggression against Ukraine will have massive consequences

The Defense Ministers of the 30 NATO member states expressed concern yesterday about Russia's actions in relation to Ukraine, describing this as a serious threat to Euro-Atlantic security, The Geopost reports. 

"Russia's actions pose a serious threat to Euro-Atlantic security. As a result, and to ensure the protection of all Allies, we are deploying additional ground forces to the eastern part of the Alliance, as well as additional naval and air assets, as announced by Allies, and have increased the readiness of our forces. Our measures are and remain preventive, proportionate and non-escalating. We stand ready to further strengthen our defensive and deterrent posture to respond to all unforeseen situations," said the statement of NATO ministers, who attended the ministerial meeting in Brussels.

NATO says it is "deeply concerned by the very large-scale, unprovoked and unjustified Russian military buildup in and around Ukraine and Belarus."

"We call on Russia, in the strongest possible terms, to choose the path of diplomacy and immediately change its focus and withdraw its forces from Ukraine in accordance with its international obligations and commitments. We remain committed to our dual approach towards Russia: deterrence and strong defense, combined with openness to dialogue," the ministers' joint statement said.

From this meeting, NATO gave a clear message: "Our commitment to Article 5 of the Washington Treaty is ironclad. We are united to defend each other."

“NATO remains committed to the fundamental principles that underpin European security, including that every nation has the right to choose its own security arrangements. We reaffirm our support for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders. As stated earlier, any further Russian aggression against Ukraine will have massive consequences and will come at a high price. NATO will continue to coordinate closely with relevant stakeholders and other international organizations, including the EU,” the statement said.

NATO and Allies continue to pursue diplomacy and dialogue with Russia on Euro-Atlantic security issues, including at the highest levels.

"We support all these efforts and the efforts in the Normandy Format to implement the Minsk agreements. We have expressed our readiness to engage in a Renewed European Security Dialogue initiated by Poland as the current chairman of the OSCE. We have made substantive proposals to Russia to enhance the security of all nations in the Euro-Atlantic area and await a response. We have consistently offered and continue to offer further dialogue through the NATO-Russia Council and stand ready to engage. We strongly encourage Russia to respond and choose diplomacy and de-escalation," the joint statement of the defense ministers of 30 NATO member states underlined.