KYIV — The head of NATO says Ukraine can win the war against Russia. Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told NATO members Sunday that Russia’s invasion, launched in February, is not going as planned.
He noted the Russians had failed to take Kyiv and now they’re pulling back from Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city.
The invasion has also led to traditionally neutral Sweden and Finland looking to join NATO despite strong objections from Moscow. Ukraine’s prime minister says Finland and Sweden applying for NATO membership are signs of a promising future.
Appearing on ABC’s This Week, Ukrainian Prime Minister Olga Stefanishyna said the rapid acceptance of Finland and Sweden’s applications show that NATO is learning from its mistakes. That comment was in reference to Ukraine’s still pending application to the alliance that was first submitted back in 2008.
The prime minister went on to say she hopes that the fast-tracking of Finland and Sweden’s applications will pave the way for Ukraine’s acceptance in the future.
British defense officials say Russia is suffering huge combat losses in Ukraine. The UK’s defense ministry estimates about a third of Russia’s invading ground forces have been wiped out since February.
In a Sunday tweet, the ministry also noted continued low morale and reduced combat effectiveness of remaining Russian forces. Moscow is believed to have deployed about 150-thousand troops when it launched its invasion of Ukraine.
