Jens Stoltenberg Calls Ukraine's Trust In NATO's Allies Swept Away Due To Arms Delivery Failure

President Zelensky with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. (Twitter/@jensstoltenberg)

JAKARTA - Secretary-General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Jens Stoltenberg said Ukraine's trust in the defense alliance's allies was "damped" due to delays and failures in arms shipments to counter the Russian invasion.

Speaking to Reuters on Monday evening as he traveled out of Ukraine by train after a full-day visit, Stoltenberg said the failure showed it was time to change the coordination of international military aid to Kyiv.

"We need a stronger and institutional framework to support us to ensure predictability, ensure greater accountability, and ensure burden sharing," he explained.

For example, the failure of NATO allies, he cited the US Congress, which took six months to pass a US$60 billion Ukrainian aid package, as well as at least the artillery ammunition given by European countries compared to the promised.

The shortfall had a major impact on the battlefield, as Russia took the temporary initiative of Ukrainian troops who lacked ammunition forced to take a defensive position.

"Of course, the fact that we haven't fulfilled what we promised has undermined trust," Stoltenberg said.

However, after a day of talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and other senior officials, he said Kyiv still believed in his allies and now it's up to them to make it happen.

He further said that one way to avoid a shortage of military aid to Ukraine in the future is to provide NATO with a greater role in coordination, as well as draw up a multi-year plan that clarifies the expected contribution from each ally.

He has submitted the proposal to 32 NATO members, saying the proposal should be backed by a large financial commitment. Diplomats say 100 billion euros (107 billion US dollars) have been disbursed for five years.

"This will facilitate planning. This will clarify what each ally hopes to achieve," Stoltenberg said.

"And NATO can then play a bigger role in ensuring allies actually implement what they have announced," he said.

Meanwhile, at a press conference with Stoltenberg on Monday, President Zelensky praised Ramstein's group, saying Ukraine wanted to ensure any new financial promises did not eliminate NATO members' bilateral aid funds to Kyiv.

It is known that Western military support for Ukraine is currently organized ad-hoc by the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (Ukraine Defense Contact Group) led by the United States, also known as the Ramstein Group.