NATO’s departure from Gaza: Civilians must be protected
NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg answered questions from journalists between sessions of the NATO Foreign Ministers’ Meeting held at NATO headquarters in Brussels. Stoltenberg said the situation in Gaza was discussed at the meeting and said allies welcomed the widening of the “humanitarian distance” between Hamas and Israel. Stoltenberg: “I hope it will be possible to extend the break even longer.” saying.
Stoltenberg stated that NATO, as an organization, does not have an active role in the Israel-Palestine issue and that some allies are involved in different ways:
“One of our messages from NATO is that the conflict must not become a broader regional conflict. “Furthermore, the message that must be given to Iran is not to use this instability to further aggravate the situation and dominate those who act on its behalf, Hamas and Hezbollah.”
“THE OCCUPATION OF RUSSIA IS WITHOUT REASON”
When asked whether he distinguishes between friends and opponents in his criticism of NATO, using Gaza and Ukraine as examples, Stoltenberg said the following:
“International humanitarian law must be respected in all conflicts and civilians must be protected at all times. This message has been the same for the conflict in Gaza and for all conflicts in other parts of the world. Whatever the form of the conflict, international law and international humanitarian law must be respected. The situation in Gaza and Ukraine is different in many ways. Ukraine has never posed a threat to Russia. Ukraine did not attack Russia. The Russian invasion of Ukraine is unprovoked. This is the invasion of another country. “Ukraine has the right to defend itself.”
Stoltenberg said that in the sessions on the first day of the two-day meeting of NATO Foreign Ministers, issues such as support for Ukraine, China and the Western Balkans were also discussed.
The NATO meeting will continue tomorrow. The NATO-Ukraine Council will hold its first meeting at the level of foreign ministers tomorrow. The Council meeting will also be attended by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Dmytro Kuleba. (AA)