US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Russia’s attacks on the civilian population and energy infrastructure in Ukraine were barbaric and that Vladimir Putin’s strategy would not work.
Blinken made a statement to the press after the NATO Foreign Ministers Meeting held in Bucharest, the capital of Romania. “(Russian President Vladimir) Putin focused his anger and fire on Ukraine’s civilian population,” Blinken said, noting that in the past few weeks, Russia has bombed more than a third of Ukraine’s energy system.
Stating that dragging millions of people into cold and darkness is Putin’s “new goals”, Blinken said, “This atrocity against the Ukrainian people is barbaric.”
“We know President Putin’s game. Don and starve,” Blinken said. He said that Putin wants to break the unity in the Western world.
Commenting that “(Putin’s) Strategy has not worked and will not work”, Blinken emphasized that all ministers meeting in Bucharest agreed.
“We are concerned about China’s military buildup”
“Facing new challenges, including those originating from China, we are working to increase NATO’s resilience for the future,” Blinken said.
Expressing that the Allies continue to be concerned about China’s policies such as “the use of disinformation, rapid, non-transparent troop build-up, including cooperation with Russia,” Blinken said, “However, we remain committed to engaging in constructive dialogue with China as much as we can and discuss common issues. We welcome opportunities to work together.”
“We do not seek conflict with China. On the contrary, we want to avoid it. We do not want a new Cold War,” Blinken said.
NATO membership of Sweden and Finland
On a question, Blinken said: “Turkey, Sweden and Finland are in direct contact alongside NATO to ensure that Turkey’s concerns, including security concerns, are fully addressed. This process is progressing and I have heard over the last few days. I’m sure Finland and Sweden will soon become officially new members of the alliance.”
