Adrian Kubicki, Consul General of the Polish Consulate in New York City, said of President Joe Biden’s Visit Poland It took place on Monday, a year after Russia invaded Poland’s neighbor Ukraine, in a key show of unity in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
Kubicki told the NTD that Biden’s visit affirms the fact that NATO will “stay united and continue to support Ukraine until the last Russian soldier leaves the country.”
and speech In Warsaw on Tuesday, Biden called Poland ‘our great all'[y]”Our support for Ukraine is unwavering,” he said.
Mr. Kubitzki said Mr. Biden’s visit to Poland had symbolic value. Poland is at the forefront of providing military aid to Ukraine. Kubitzki also touted Biden’s plans to meet nine Bucharest countries, including Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia. Formerly part of the Soviet Union or the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact, it now represents the eastern end of the NATO alliance.
A Polish diplomat said Biden’s talks with the B9 nations would allow them to discuss “some steps that can be taken to enhance security in our region on the eastern flank of NATO.”
It’s time to strengthen NATO’s eastern flank
Kubitzki said he believes Russia is trying to absorb neighboring Belarus and reintegrate former Soviet member states into the new structure, “perhaps even surpassing it.”
“Final [Russian President Vladimir Putin] It will also pose a direct threat to NATO countries, Poland and the Baltics,” Kubicki said.
For now, Polish diplomats believe Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has exposed the country’s military shortcomings.
“This period is primarily to ensure that Ukraine is well-equipped to support Western weapons, repel Russian aggressors and strengthen security,” Kubitzki said. “NATO must focus on strengthening the security of its member states, especially those on NATO’s eastern flank.”
Russia still poses a threat
Kubicki assessed that Russia was struggling in Ukraine, but predicted that Russia could continue to fight in Ukraine for years to come.
“Russia is not as strong as we think it is, but it is by no means weak,” Kubicki said. “It’s a big creature, ready to survive for long periods of time without progress or visible action. So this is something we have to consider.”
in another recent interview Tom Lynch, a prominent research fellow at the National Defense University, estimates that with regard to the NTD, Russia has committed about 90 to 95 percent of its military power to Ukraine.
Lynch and other international observers New Russian Offensive in Ukraine. Lynch predicted that Russian forces would seek to maintain territorial gains in eastern Ukraine and a land bridge connecting Crimea to mainland Ukraine.
“I think the Russians will make a real effort to go here and at least save the occupation,” Lynch said.
Lynch said he believed Russia’s new attack on Ukraine was intended to discourage Western countries from continuing to support Ukraine.
“[Putin’s] I hope that such a large-scale operation as we see will begin to unfold again in Ukraine with hundreds of thousands of Russian troops and its continuation will cause fatigue in the West. are doing. .
Russia also receives military equipment from some allies. Russia appears to have been using her Iran-made Shah-136 drones to strike targets across Ukraine in recent months.US and North Korea supply of missiles and rockets To the Wagner Group, a mercenary unit fighting for Russia.
So far, China does not appear to have provided direct military support to Russia, but Lynch said, “We’ll have to wait and see.”
“Putin and [Chinese leader Xi Jinping] We will meet here in a few days. And we’ll see how this continues to unfold,” added Lynch.
Kubicki said he hopes China will not choose to become ever more involved in Russia’s war effort.
“China could change the dynamics of this war,” said the diplomat. “And obviously this is something we hope doesn’t happen yet.”
from NTD News