Bakhmut may fall within days, must not underestimate Russia: NATO chief

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Wednesday that Bakhmut, the city in eastern Ukraine that has witnessed fierce fighting in recent months, may fall into Russian hands in the coming days.

“What we see is that Russia is throwing more troops, more forces and what Russia lacks in quality they try to make up in quantity," Stoltenberg said after a meeting of EU defence ministers in the Swedish capital of Stockholm.

“They have suffered big losses, but at the same time, we cannot rule out that Bakhmut may eventually fall in the coming days.”

The head of the trans-Atlantic alliance urged the member countries to continue lending support to Ukraine. “It just highlights that we should not underestimate Russia. We must continue to provide support to Ukraine,” he said.

Stoltenberg on Wednesday said Sweden and Finland's blocked bids for membership in the Western military alliance have made progress. His remarks came ahead of the meeting with officials from Sweden, Finland, and Turkey at the NATO headquarters in Brussels.

“I don't expect the process to be concluded tomorrow. But I'm confident that Finland, Sweden will become NATO's allies,” Stoltenberg told media personnel in Stockholm.

Meanwhile, Josep Borrell, the head of foreign affairs for the European Union, said on Wednesday that he had urged the grouping tospend €1 billion to replenish their own stocks as well as tobuy ammunition jointly for Ukraine. “I propose to mobilise another €1bn,” Reuters reported he told the media after a meeting of EU defence ministers in Stockholm.

Borrell also discussed the investigations into the explosions of the Nord Stream gas pipeline, stating that no conclusions could be made while the inquiries were still underway.

(With inputs from agencies)

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