NATO chief says he was aware of Russia's plan to invade Ukraine

Jens Stoltenberg, the secretary general of NATO, claims that on the night of February 23, 2022, he went to bed completely aware of the impending bloodshed as Russia invaded Ukraine. The chief of the Western military alliance had been warning of Russia's Vladimir Putin for months, and his predictions that day would come true had solidified into confidence. 

A week ahead of the first anniversary of the invasion, in an interview, the NATO Chief went on record and said, "I went to bed. But it was a very short night because I knew that at some stage, within hours, someone was going to wake me up - and that was exactly what happened." He further added "around four o'clock, I was called by my chief of staff, and he just briefly told me that they have started, meaning the invasion has started. No surprise, because we knew".

The NATO secretary general had no doubt that Putin was going to act, despite the fact that many people around the world continued to hold out hope that Russia would not attempt a full-scale invasion. "It's possible to be shocked by the brutality of the war. But there's no way to be surprised because this was really something that was predicted months ahead of the invasion," he said.

One Year Since The Invasion

Stoltenberg issued a warning that NATO must be prepared for a new phase of confrontation with Russia that might last for a very long time. One year into a war has costed tens of thousands of lives and derailed Europe's security. "President Putin wants a different Europe, wants a Europe where he can control neighbours, where he can decide what countries can do," Stoltenberg said.

"We need to be prepared for the long haul, this may last for many, many, many, many years." Moscow's attack on a pro-Western neighbouring country has thrown Europe into its most serious crisis since World War II and compelled the NATO allies to undertake the largest defence upgrade since the fall of the Soviet Union.

"We saw the fall of the Berlin Wall, or we saw 9/11," he said. He added further and said that NATO would, "Always look into where there are opportunities to again come into the situation where there is room for a better relationship, but with the current behaviour of the Russian regime, the regime in Moscow, there's no way".

Some Western leaders worry that a direct military fight may turn into a nuclear war between both the West and Russia even though NATO countries have not dispatched their own forces to Ukraine. But, since the arrival of the Russian tanks, tens of thousands of more NATO soldiers have been stationed on the alliance's eastern border, and other European allies have increased their military budget.

Members of NATO, led by the US, have provided Ukraine with weapons worth tens of billions of dollars to aid in its defence against Russia. With the catastrophic pullout from Afghanistan in 2021, it has provided the coalition, which was established in the aftermath of World War II to face the Soviet Union.

#NATO Defence Ministers addressed key issues for our shared security, taking steps to strengthen deterrence & defence, boost stockpiles, and protect critical undersea infrastructure. We continue to step up support for #Ukraine in their fight for freedom. #defmin pic.twitter.com/fz2i5Uw0vU

— Jens Stoltenberg (@jensstoltenberg) February 15, 2023

But Stoltenberg insisted the invasion "hasn't really changed NATO that much, because we had to remember the war didn't start in February 2022. The war started in 2014, when Russia first illegally annexed Crimea. What we have seen since the full-fledged invasion last year, is the value of North America and Europe standing together, is the importance of what we have done over the last years to invest more in defence, increased readiness".

'It's Black and White' NATO Chief on Russia's Invasion of Ukraine

"This is a war of choice by President Putin, there is only one responsible and that is President Putin and the decision makers in Moscow," he said. "We can analyse, we can discuss, we can all consider different decisions, but that doesn't in any way remove the responsibility that President Putin has for this war. Sometimes in history, it's black and white. Sometimes it's really right and wrong," he added.

As Moscow sends additional troops to the battlefront in an effort to make up for earlier setbacks, NATO is bracing for a resurgent Russian attack after a year of warfare in which both sides claim to have killed tens of thousands of their adversaries. Yet, according to Stoltenberg, the 30 member alliance is still as devoted as ever to seeing that Ukraine wins out in the end.