Stoltenberg Says NATO Will Not Be A Conflicting Party If West Allows Kyiv To Attack Russia

Secretary General of NATO Jens Stoltenberg. (Source: NATO)

JAKARTA - The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) will not become a conflicting party in Ukraine's war if its member states allow Kyiv to attack Russian territory with Western weapons, the organization's secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg said in an interview with Foreign Policy.

"It's not true when President Putin said we would be the party in the conflict," Stoltenberg claimed, quoted by TASS September 17.

He further explained that NATO did not consider Iran and North Korea as parties in the conflict over alleged military assistance to Moscow.

According to the Secretary-General, NATO is closely monitoring what Russia is doing in its nuclear posture.

"So far, we haven't seen any changes in their nuclear posture that require changes from our side," he said, pointing out there would be no winner in the nuclear war.

Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Ukraine was unable to carry out a deep attack on Russian territory without the help of the West, as such attacks required satellite intelligence and flight missions.

Kremlin leaders noted that NATO countries are currently not only discussing whether to allow Ukraine to use their long-range weapons, but basically decide whether to engage directly in the Ukrainian conflict.

He stressed Moscow would make decisions based on the threats posed against Russia, including future threats.

Separately, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said Moscow was aware that the West had made a decision on a distant attack on Russian territory, sending appropriate signals to Kyiv.

The senior diplomat confirmed Russia would give a firm response to the attack.