July 11th 2023.
NATO leaders are preparing to deliver a 'positive message' to Kyiv over its future prospects for joining the military alliance. This is despite Russia's strong warnings against any escalation of the war in Ukraine. Konstantin Gavrilov, a senior Russian security negotiator based in Vienna, accused the United States of fuelling the conflict by pouring arms into Ukraine ahead of the NATO summit. He said Europe would be the first to face 'catastrophic consequences' if the war escalated, but he did not specify what those consequences might be.
Gavrilov also accused the United States of trying to 'undermine' Russia and said: "Let's look at the facts – the fate of Europe is of little interest to the United States." Anatoly Antonov, Russian Ambassador to the United States, echoed these sentiments and said that everything was being done to prepare local public opinion for the approval of any anti-Russian decisions at the NATO summit in Vilnius.
At the summit, NATO leaders are set to approve the alliance's first comprehensive plans since the end of the Cold War to defend against any attack by Moscow. Alexander Tokovinin, Russia's ambassador to Belgium, expressed his concern that these plans would make the NATO-Russia confrontation more tense and prolonged.
Diplomats said that differences were narrowing among the allies over Ukraine's push for NATO membership, though it will not be invited to join the alliance while the war still rages. Gavrilov commented on this, saying: "Both the United States and NATO understand that time is not working for them. They are losing in Ukraine."
In fact, Ukraine's military recently announced that its forces had caught occupying Russian troops 'in a trap' in the eastern city of Bakhmut. This shows that Kyiv's counteroffensive, which began last month, is making more progress than expected, giving hope to NATO leaders and the Ukrainian people.
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