Speech by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the Verkhovna Rada in Ukraine, 29 April 2024.
🗣 | NATO Secretary General:
Chairman Stefanchuk,
Dear Members of the Verkhovna Rada,
It’s a great honour and pleasure to be here and to meet with all of you.
It is an honour to address this House once again.
Seven years ago, I became the first Secretary General to address the Ukrainian parliament.
Today marks the third time I have had this privilege.
And for the third time, I will quote the great Ukrainian poet Taras Shevchenko.
He wrote:
“Our soul shall never perish;
Freedom knows no dying.
And the greedy cannot harvest
Fields where seas are lying.”
Ladies and gentlemen,
Ukraine’s freedom cannot,
must not,
and will not die.
Allow me therefore to express my deep appreciation and respect to all of you.
And through you, the people of Ukraine.
I also pay tribute to your brave women and men in uniform, and to all the fallen.
We will never forget their sacrifice.
Here in this chamber, along the frontlines, and all over the country, Ukrainians are fighting for freedom.
To defend your land and your loved ones.
But also to defend democratic values.
Legitimate government requires the consent of the people.
Legitimate decisions are taken with ballots, not bullets.
The same values at the heart of NATO.
Prizing the force of law, rather than the law of force.
The regime in Moscow does not share these values.
In Russia, thought is controlled,
Freedom curtailed, and
opposition crushed.
As Russia becomes more repressive at home, it has become more aggressive abroad.
And more aligned with other authoritarian powers.
Just days before the brutal invasion of Ukraine, President Putin and President Xi signed an agreement of “no-limits” partnership.
Today, China is propping up Russia's war economy.
Providing key capabilities like semiconductors, microelectronics, and satellite imagery.
This enables Russia to build the missiles and to build the bombs they are using to kill Ukrainians.
In return for this support, Moscow is mortgaging its future to Beijing.
Meanwhile, just over the past six months, North Korea has provided 10,000 containers with at least 1 million shells of artillery rounds.
And Iran is delivering thousands of deadly Shahed drones to Russia.
In return, Russia is providing technology and supplies to advance Iranian and North Korean missiles and nuclear capabilities.
Moscow, Beijing, Tehran and Pyongyang must not believe that they can get their way by using force.
They must understand that democracies are strong.
That we have staying power.
And that we stand for our values.
That is why Ukraine’s fight is so important.
You fight not only for yourselves,
But for the freedoms we all treasure.
So let me say, from the bottom of my heart:
Thank you so much to Ukraine.
NATO Allies have provided unprecedented support to Ukraine over the past two years.
99 percent of all military aid.
But in recent months, NATO Allies did not provide the support we promised.
For months, the United States was unable to agree a package of support.
And European Allies delivered far less ammunition than we said we would.
These delays have had consequences.
And you know that better than anyone else.
Ukraine has been outgunned, so Russia has pushed forward on the front lines.
Ukraine has lacked air defence, so more Russian missiles and drones have hit their targets.
Ukraine has lacked deep precision strike, so Russia has been able to concentrate more forces.
But it’s not too late for Ukraine to prevail.
More support is on the way.
I chaired an urgent meeting of defence ministers in the NATO-Ukraine Council a few days ago.
President Zelenskyy addressed us.
Allies understood the urgency.
And agreed to step up support.
Last week, the United States agreed a new package, which provides over 60 billion dollars’ worth of aid.
Including critical air defence and artillery ammunition.
Also last week, when we were together in Poland, Prime Minister Sunak announced the U.K.’s largest delivery yet -
Including dozens of combat boats, hundreds of vehicles, thousands of missiles, and millions of rounds of ammunition.
Germany will deliver an additional Patriot system.
The Netherlands is contributing an additional 4 billion euros.
Transcript continues: www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/op...
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