‘Rumors of the death of NATO are greatly exaggerated’: White House warns Putin

Talk of splits over support for Ukraine have been ‘greatly exaggerated’, U.S. national security advisor Jake Sullivan said on Tuesday, warning Vladimir Putin that he will be ‘disappointed’ by what emerges from a key NATO summit in Lithuania. 

The top aide to President Biden hit out at claims that divisions had erupted over Washington’s decision to send controversial cluster bombs to Kyiv‘s armed forces. 

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak had been amongst a chorus of voices who raised concerns about shipping the highly lethal arms to the war-torn country. 

But in a response to DailyMail.com, Sullivan dismissed claims that the 31-nation military alliance was fractured over its backing of the Ukrainian military.  

‘I would say rumors of the death of NATO’s unity were greatly exaggerated,’ he said. ‘Vladimir Putin has been counting on the West to crack, NATO to crack and the transatlantic alliance to crack and he has been disappointed with every turn.’

The Russian tyrant will be ‘very much disappointed’ by what emerges from the two-day meeting in Lithuania, Sullivan added.

And in a clear sign that tensions were on the rise, Russian ambassador to the U.S. Anatoly Antonov accused Washington of plotting ‘confrontation’ with Moscow.

‘Everything is being done to prepare domestic public opinion for the approval of the anti-Russian decisions that will be made in Vilnius in the coming days,’ he was quoted as saying by the RIA news agency, a Kremlin mouthpiece. 

Ukraine is seeking interim security guarantees from the U.S. and its allies as it waits to join NATO.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will hold talks with Joe Biden on Wednesday as part of that push for legally-binding protection from future Russian aggression.  

On Monday, the mutual defense club agreed to axe its so-called Membership Action Plan for Kyiv, traditionally a waiting room for countries looking to sign up. 

It means, in theory, that Ukraine is on a fast-track to joining, but Joe Biden has warned that will not happen until the war is over.

A ‘reform path for Ukraine’ will be drawn up but ‘I can’t put a timetable on it, Sullivan said.

He ruled out any immediate entry for Western-backed Ukraine, given its ongoing war against Russian invasion, saying this would ‘bring NATO into a war with Russia.’

A paper by ex-NATO chief Ander Fogh Rasmussen and his chief of staff Andriy Yermak last year suggested a Kyiv Security Compact, effectively shadow NATO membership, to protect the country and its people from future Russian aggression.

It said that it should include US, Great Britain, Canada, Poland, Italy, Germany, France, Australia, and Turkey, as well as Baltic, Central and Eastern Europe.

Ukraine was first considered for NATO membership in 2008 but was never offered a formal process to join amid fears that Russia would be provoked by such a move.

Under Article 5 of the alliance’s mutual defense treaty, an attack on one NATO ally is considered as an attack on all.

But it is not automatic, and the clause requires the approval of all NATO countries to be triggered.

That has happened only once since NATO was founded in 1949; in 2001 after the 9/11 attacks and George W. Bush’s invasion of Afghanistan.

The focus on Ukraine comes as Turkey backed down on blocking Sweden ‘s bid to join NATO on Monday.

It followed hours of last-minute diplomacy that saw the U.S. green light the delivery of F-16 fighter jets to the Turkish government.

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg made the announcement in a joint statement with Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Swedish Ulf Kristersson.

Erdogan said he would urge Turkish MPs to ratify Sweden’s application to join the 31-member mutual defense club ‘as soon as possible’.

Earlier, the strongman leader had linked dropping his opposition to Stockholm’s possible membership to reviving long-dead EU accession talks.