NATO foreign ministers pledged more support for Ukraine at a meeting in Bucharest on Tuesday, including helping to repair its energy infrastructure amid Russian attacks.
They said in a joint statement that they remain committed to “commitment to Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity”.
“Russia’s unacceptable actions, including hybrid activities, energy blackmail and reckless nuclear rhetoric, undermine the rules-based international order,” the statement said.
Ukraine is experiencing nationwide blackouts as Russia continues to bomb energy infrastructure.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg confirmed that generators and spare parts for Ukraine’s energy grid have already been delivered.
“We have delivered generators, we have delivered spare parts and the allies are helping, in different ways, to rebuild the destroyed infrastructure. We must realize that the attacks (from Russia) have enormous effects,” said Stoltenberg upon his arrival. for the meeting.
The United States announced that it would provide $53 million to purchase power grid equipment for Ukraine.
“This equipment will be urgently delivered to Ukraine quickly to help Ukrainians endure through the winter,” a State Department statement said, adding that the package would include distribution transformers, circuit breakers and lightning arresters. among other equipment.
Ukraine has urged its Western partners to supply it with both air defense systems and transformers to mitigate Russian strikes.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said he was discussing with NATO foreign ministers how to speed up the process of delivering arms to his country and securing energy infrastructure.
“We appreciate what has been done, but the war continues,” Kuleba said on the sidelines of the NATO meeting, speaking alongside Stoltenberg.
“Today I have three more words, three different words, which are: faster, faster and faster,” Kuleba said.
