The helicopters have been buzzing around the Old Town for the past two days. They were flying again bright and early this morning when I took the dog out for a walk. As near as I can tell a pair of Blackhawks. The entire quarter has been closed to vehicular traffic, so the cars were piled up along Vytautas St. as I went to the local bakery with Loki. People don't seem too put out by it. It's what you have to expect when you host a NATO summit in a small city. After today it will be back to normal again.
President Biden is giving a speech this afternoon in the grand courtyard of Vilnius University. It is free and open to the public. I'm half tempted to go. Daina not so much. We missed our opportunity to see Pres. Zelenskyy at Lukiškių square yesterday as a frontline Ukrainian flag was brought all the way from Kyiv by a group of marathon runners who took turns over the 723 km. distance. A run that began 16 days ago. Zelenskyy made an impassioned speech calling on NATO to be bolder in its actions after no decision was reached on when to admit Ukraine into the North Atlantic alliance.
Twenty-three countries had signed off on admitting Ukraine, including Turkey, which was met with surprise and derision by Moscow. Still eight countries held out, the most notable being the United States, which felt Ukraine wasn't ready for admission. To be fair, Ukraine wasn't expecting to be admitted yesterday but was hoping for a definitive timetable so emotions were running high at the summit.
Biden had earlier said in a segment with Fareed Zakaria that to admit Ukraine now would be to give Putin what he wants - a world war. Biden wants NATO to keep a safe distance from the war while still giving Ukraine the munitions and logistical support it needs to carry out its defense of the country.
Given all the concerns expressed by political pundits following the events, NATO Secretary General Jan Stoltenberg came on television last night to say Ukraine will be admitted into NATO in due time and that it will be a fast track process. Stoltenberg didn't want to give any timetable or conditions because NATO thought it would embolden Russia to make every effort to hold onto its illegally acquired territories. A ceasefire only benefits Russia. It doesn't benefit Ukraine. Whether this placated critics remains to be seen, but there was a lot less griping in the morning news.
Lithuania has been one of the staunchest defenders of Ukraine throughout the war in providing a safe haven for refugees and giving military and economic assistance to Ukraine. Per capita, Poland and the Baltic countries have all given at least one percent of their GDP to the besieged country, and have been adamant in having Ukraine admitted into NATO. Stands to reason given their long history with Russia.
This is something Western European countries don't seem to appreciate. They want to keep the war at arms length. It has been a Herculean task getting any kind of military assistance out of Germany, France, Italy and the Netherlands. Lots of promises but little in the way of munitions have made its' way to Ukraine from these countries. Poland wants to give more but is being held back by NATO. Its leaders fought hard to finally give German tanks and their old MiG fighter jets to Ukraine, hoping to upgrade its air force with more F-16s.
Surprisingly, Britain has been one of the most vocal supporters and military providers to Ukraine throughout the war, raising the stakes as far as the US is concerned, which is probably one reason Defence Sec. Ben Wallace did not become the new NATO chief. Instead, Stoltenberg will serve an additional year. It seems Britain more than its Western partners realizes how important this war is in regard to the security of Europe. Others still see it as a regional conflict.
Turkey has been the biggest surprise however. No one expected Erdogan to approve Sweden's membership at the summit. Earlier, he had supported Ukraine's NATO bid, releasing several commanders from the Azov battalion that Turkey had gained in an exchange with Russia. Needless to say, the Kremlin was none too happy about these developments. Doesn't seem like Putin and Erdogan have such a strong bromance after all.
The biggest winner is Lithuania. Never before has the country hosted such a high profile event with so many world leaders in the capital at one time. It was twenty years ago that George Bush came to Vilnius to assure Lithuania it would become a NATO member. "No more Yaltas" he exclaimed in his speech before the old City Hall. Biden also reminded reporters at a press conference yesterday that he previously came to Vilnius in 2014 as Vice-President, and similarly provided assurances that the US would have the country's back following Russia's annexation of Crimea.
The Baltics are particularly vulnerable as they are so small and block Russia's connection to Kaliningrad, an enclave it acquired after WWII. The Baltics had been absorbed both into the 19th century Russian Empire and the Soviet Union, enjoying a very brief period of independence between World War I and II. So, these NATO assurances are vital to Baltic security, especially in the wake of the war in Ukraine.
We would all dearly love to see NATO make a stronger commitment to Ukraine. That will be discussed today. In Zelenskyy's speech yesterday he made it clear that Ukraine is not only defending itself but Europe as well. If Putin is able to get the upper hand, there will be no stopping his imperial ambitions. This is why it is so important that NATO members do not flag in their support for Ukraine!
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