The US announced a new security package for Ukraine worth $225m, which includes a Patriot missile battery, additional ammunition for high-mobility artillery rocket systems and missiles, among other items. President Joe Biden told Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskiy “we will stay with you, period” ahead of a bilateral meeting on Thursday.
US president, Joe Biden, is scheduled to face journalists at a news conference marking the end of Nato’s 75th anniversary summit at 6.30pm ET. The US president’s press conference, which will include questions from reporters, is certain to be scrutinised for any signs of slip-ups.
Ukraine’s president Zelenskiy urged Nato allies to lift restrictions on its use of long-range weapons against targets in Russia. Zelenskiy said doing so would be a “game-changer” in its war with Moscow, adding: “If we want to win, if we want to prevail, to save our country and to defend it, we need to lift all the limitations.”
Zelenskiy urges Ukraine's allies to lift restrictions on strikes inside Russian territory – video
Hungary does not want, and will not support, Nato becoming an “anti-China” bloc, foreign minister Peter Szijjarto told Hungary’s state television while in Washington DC. Speaking on the sidelines of a Nato summit, Szijjarto also said Ukraine’s admission to the alliance would weaken unity within the group
Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that any possibility of a direct confrontation between Russia and Nato was “worrying”. He added: “Any steps that could lead to this outcome should be consciously avoided.”
Hungary’s prime minister, Viktor Orbán, will fly to Mar-a-Lago on Thursday to meet with Donald Trump, according to two sources with knowledge of the meeting. Orbán has enraged his Nato allies by meeting with Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping en route to the alliance’s summit in Washington DC. He has also met with Zelenskiy in Kyiv, and is said to be quietly negotiating his own ceasefire plan without consulting either the Biden administration or other EU countries.
Biden has appeared to back Keir Starmer’s ambition for the UK having a closer relationship with the EU as the leaders held their first bilateral talks at the White House on Wednesday evening. The US president called the US and the UK the “best of allies” as he met the new prime minister in the Oval Office, describing the UK as the “knot” that tied the transatlantic relationship together.
France, Germany, Italy and Poland signed a letter of intent to develop ground-launched cruise missiles with a range beyond 500km (310 miles), aiming to fill what they say is a gap in European arsenals exposed by Russia’s war in Ukraine. Speaking on the sidelines of the Nato summit in Washington DC after the signing ceremony, French defence minister Sébastien Lecornu said the new missile was meant to serve as a deterrent.
Norway will donate 1bn Norwegian kroner ($92.69m) in support to Ukraine for its air defence, prime minister Jonas Gahr Støre said at the Nato summit. The donation comes a day after Norway announced it would give six F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine to help it in defence efforts against Russian air attacks.
Russia will act to counter the planned US deployment of long-range missiles in Germany, the Kremlin said, as it regarded the Nato military alliance’s actions as a serious threat to Russia’s national security.
Germany’s chancellor Olaf Scholz said that France remained a key partner on the international stage as leader Emmanuel Macron struggles to build a coalition government after elections. “France will be on the international agenda a big partner, a strong partner of all of us, and especially a partner for Germany,” Scholz said at the Nato summit on Thursday.
Romania, Bulgaria and Greece signed a deal to enable swift cross-border movement of troops and weapons to Nato’s eastern flank, Romania’s defence ministry said. The planned harmonised military mobility corridor between the three Nato and EU states was one of two such mobility corridors agreed on the sidelines of the Nato summit in Washington DC.
On the face of it, it was a busy Nato summit, not short of outcomes: badly needed air defence systems and fighter jets for Ukraine and a commitment that Kyiv was on an “irreversible path” to membership – plus a cross-alliance warning to China for its discreet help to Russia as it continues its assault on Ukraine.
Yet, behind the activity lurks the cliff-edge of the US election. In the Washington heat, the worry is not so much about Joe Biden’s health, but the Democrats’ ability to defeat Donald Trump in the November election. The reality is that Nato will struggle if the US is sceptical, fitful or unengaged.
During the last Trump presidency, Nato survived by hunkering down, making minimal commitments during a period of less geopolitical uncertainty. This time, with a major war continuing on the edge of Europe, a dysfunctional Nato is not obviously an attractive option, but it nevertheless lingers.
Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg said that Ukraine’s future “is in Nato”.
Stoltenberg’s comments on Thursday at the ongoing Nato summit in Washington DC follow his earlier comments on Wednesday when he said Ukraine’s membership to Nato is not a question of “if, but when”.
Nato chief says 'Ukraine's future is in Nato' in joint news conference with Zelenskiy – video
Here are some images coming through the newswires of the ongoing Nato summit in Washington DC:
A general view of the room as Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg delivers remarks at a meeting of the Nato-Ukraine Council during the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Summit at Walter E Washington Convention Center in Washington DC, on 11 July 2024. Photograph: Michael Reynolds/EPA
Portugal’s prime minister Luis Montenegro, Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg and Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskiy attend a session during Nato’s 75th anniversary summit, in Washington DC. Photograph: Leah Millis/Reuters
Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg, US president Joe Biden, British prime minister Keir Starmer and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky attend a meeting of the Nato-Ukraine Council during the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Summit at Walter E Washington Convention Center in Washington. Photograph: Shawn Thew/EPA
US national security communications advisor John Kirby speaks to reporters during the Nato summit of G7 in Washington DC, on 11 July 2024. Photograph: Ken Cedeno/Reuters
The US’s plan to station long-range missiles in Germany is a step towards a new cold war confrontation, Russia said on Thursday.
Speaking to a state TV reporter on Thursday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said:
“We are taking steady steps towards the cold war … All the attributes of the Cold War with the direct confrontation are returning,” Agence France-Presse reports.
Peskov’s comments follow the US’s argument on Wednesday that stationing long-range weapons including Tomahawk cruise missiles in Europe is a form of deterrence.
Peskov went on to add that the latest move by the US is giving Russia “a reason to pull together … [and] fulfill all the goals” of its ongoing military operations in Ukraine.
US announces new $225m military aid package for Ukraine
US secretary of state Antony Blinken has released a statement announcing new military assistance for Ukraine.
In the statement, which was released amid the ongoing Nato summit in Washington DC, Blinken said:
… the United States is sending Ukraine a significant new package of urgently needed weapons and equipment to support the Ukrainian military as it continues to repel Russia’s assault.
This $225m package, which will be provided under Presidential Drawdown Authority, includes: a Patriot missile battery, munitions for National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems; Stinger anti-aircraft missiles; ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems; 155mm and 105mm artillery rounds; Tube-Launched, Optically-Tracked, Wire-Guided missiles and equipment; Javelin and AT-4 anti-armor systems; small arms ammunition; demolitions munitions and equipment; and other ancillary equipment.
The package is the eighth security assistance package that the Joe Biden administration has authorized to Ukraine in its fight against Russian aggression.
A High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) of Ukrainian army fires close to the frontline at the northern Kherson region, Ukraine, on 5 November 2022. Photograph: Hannibal Hanschke/EPA
As we reported earlier, Nato’s secretary general Jens Stoltenberg was asked during his joint press conference with Volodymyr Zelenskiy about a report of a foiled Russian plot to assassinate the head of a German arms manufacturer.
According to the CNN report, US intelligence discovered earlier this year that the Russian government planned to kill Armin Papperger,the chief executive of Rheinmetall.
Rheinmetall has been producing artillery shells and military vehicles for Ukraine.
The plot to assassinate Papperger was one of a series of Russian plans to kill defence industry executives across Europe who were supporting Ukraine’s war effort, according to the report. It says that the plan to kill the Rheinmetall CEO was “the most mature”.
According to the report, the US informed Germany of the plan, and German security services were able to foil the plot and protect Papperger.
Armin Papperger, CEO of Rheinmetall, attends the recovery forum of the Ukraine Recovery Conference 2024 in Berlin, Germany, on 11 June 2024. Photograph: Annegret Hilse/Reuters
Zelenskiy urges Nato allies to lift restrictions on Ukrainian strikes inside Russian territory
Volodymyr Zelenskiy, during a joint press conference with Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg, urged his country’s allies to lift all restrictions on Ukraine conducting long-range strikes on targets inside Russian territory.
The Ukrainian president said:
If we want to win, if we want to prevail, if we want to save our country and to defend it, we need to lift all the limitations.
Zelenskiy said he had spoken to Ukraine’s allies and he had “very good messages” from the UK about this, adding:
Zelenskiy,asked about Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán’s plans to meet with Donald Trump, says he hadn’t been aware ahead of time about Orbán’s meetings with Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping or Trump.
The Ukrainian president says he doesn’t know if Orbán will visit Kyiv again, and that “that’s between us”.
Stoltenberg says Ukraine's right of self-defence includes right to strike legitimate targets on Russian territory
Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg asked about restrictions placed on Ukraine regarding the use of weapons to hit targets in Russian territory, noting that this is a “war of aggression” launched by Russia and that Ukraine has the right to self-defence.
Nato allies have the right to help and uphold Ukraine’s right of self-defence “without becoming party to the conflict”, he says, but he notes that the right of self-defence includes the right to strike legitimate military targets on Russian territory.
Stoltenberg notes that allies have reduced the restrictions placed on Ukraine, with countries varying in their restrictions, but that this has enabled Ukraine to strike legitimate military targets on Russian territory.
Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg declines to comment on a report that the US and Germany foiled a Russian plot to assassinate the chief executive of the German arms manufacturer Rheinmetall, which has been producing artillery shells for Ukraine.
Stoltenberg says he will not go into that specific report, but says that there is a “pattern” of Russian campaign organised by its security services to conduct “hostile actions” against Nato allies.
The purpose of this ongoing Russian campaign is to intimidate Nato allies from support Ukraine, Stoltenberg says, adding:
What we have seen over the last months is that Nato allies have not been intimidated.
He adds that the Russian attempt to intimidate Ukraine’s allies is having the “opposite effect”.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy speaks about the “irreversibility” of Ukraine’s path towards Nato membership, saying:
Every step truly brings us closer to membership. We are doing and will continue to do everything to ensure that the day comes when Ukraine is invited and become a Nato member.
The Ukrainian leader says he is “confident” that his country will achieve this.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy begins his remarks by calling on Nato allies to “preserve our unity” in the face of Russian aggression, so that Vladimir Putin does not “succeed in making the world accept that wars of aggression are normal”.
The Ukrainian leader thanks allies for their support and says “concrete successes” have been achieved within the framework of this Nato summit.
Kyiv “appreciates” the decision to give it five additional air defence systems and dozens of other systems, Zelenskiy says, and expects them to be delivered “as soon as possible, so that as many lives as possible can be saved”.
Jens Stoltenberg says more than 20 allies and partners have signed bilateral security agreements with Ukraine.
The Nato chief says that he and Volodymyr Zelenskiy agreed during a meeting earlier today that “more funding, more military support, more security agreements and more interoperability constitute a bridge to Nato membership”.
“Ukraine’s future is in Nato,” Stoltenberg says, adding that he welcomes Kyiv’s progress on reforms and that as it continues “this important work, we will support you on your irreversible path to Nato membership”.
Jens Stoltenberg, the Nato secretary general, is holding a joint news conference with Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
Stoltenberg begins by welcoming the Ukrainian leader to the Nato summit, and says allies are “eager” to demonstrate their support to him and his country.
Since the last Nato summit, allies have provided Ukraine with “unprecedented support, including tens of billions of euros in military aid”, Stoltenberg says.
The Nato chief says that on Wednesday, allies agreed a “substantial” package for Ukraine, including security assistance and training and a “minimum baseline” of €40bn in military aid for Ukraine within the next year.
