NATO’s Stoltenberg asks allies to give air defense systems to Ukraine

BRUSSELS — NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Wednesday called on allies to beef up Ukraine’s air defense, amid intensifying Russian attacks.

Stoltenberg spoke as Germany is making plans to encourage European countries operating Patriot missiles to give the systems to Ukraine. Over the weekend, Berlin announced it would send one Patriot air defense system.

“Germany announced it will send another Patriot system to Ukraine, a part of the important effort we are now making across the NATO alliance to step up our delivery of air defense systems to Ukraine,” Stoltenberg said.

“If allies face a choice between meeting NATO capability targets and providing more aid to Ukraine, my message is clear: Send more to Ukraine,” he said, adding that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would attend a NATO-Ukraine Council on Friday.

Shortly after Stoltenberg’s press conference, NATO announced he would join the G-7 foreign ministers’ meeting in Italy on Thursday, where they are set to discuss Ukraine and the Middle East.

A Russian airstrike killed 13 Ukrainians on Wednesday, an incident that Zelenskyy said could have been avoided if Kyiv had received sufficient Western military aid in advance.

POLITICO reported Wednesday that Germany’s Foreign Affairs Minister Annalena Baerbock and Defense Minister Boris Pistorius are launching an “Immediate Action on Air Defence” initiative to persuade partners in NATO and beyond to send urgently needed air defense systems to Ukraine.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, who is widely expected to succeed Stoltenberg later this year, said during the same press conference that the Netherlands, Denmark and the Czech Republic “will consider … in what ways we can [give] support to this German initiative.”

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen also supported calls to beef up Kyiv’s air defense capabilities.

“We welcome Germany’s decision just few days ago to donate yet another Patriot system to Ukraine. And I think the important question … to ask ourselves, are we not better off sending a few of our own air defense systems to Ukraine at a time when they — not we — are struggling daily to fight off the never-ending Russian attack?” Frederiksen said.

“We know we have systems in Europe. Some of them need now to be delivered into Ukraine,” she added.