Ukraine can win the war against Russia, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Sunday.
During the security alliance's meeting in Berlin, Stoltenberg said the war "is not going as Moscow had planned."
"They failed to take Kyiv. They are pulling back from around Kharkiv, their major offensive in the Donbas has stalled," Stoltenberg said during a press conference.
"Russia is not achieving its strategic objectives. President [Vladimir] Putin wants Ukraine defeated, NATO down and Europe and North America divided. But Ukraine stands, NATO is stronger than ever. Europe and North America are solidly united. Ukraine can win this war."
NATO members met during the weekend to discuss potential new memberships Finland and Sweden.
Stoltenberg, who was recovering from COVID-19, called in via video link to support the two Nordic countries' potential application to NATO.
He also addressed NATO’s support of Ukraine.
"Allies have committed and delivered security assistance to Ukraine worth billions of dollars, and over the years, NATO and Allies have trained tens of thousands of Ukrainian forces," he said. "All of this is making a real difference on the battlefield every day.
"We must continue to step up and sustain our military support to Ukraine, and build on the work of the Ukraine Support Group which recently met in Ramstein."
Russia probably has lost nearly a third of the ground forces it deployed to Ukraine and its offensive in the Donbas region "has lost momentum and fallen significantly behind schedule," British military intelligence said Sunday.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday said Russia was planning to "somehow intensify its movement in the south of Ukraine," but that Ukraine was prepared and could beat them back and win the war.
"The occupiers still do not want to admit that they are in a dead end and their so-called 'special operation' has already gone bankrupt," Zelenskyy told his compatriots. "But the moment will surely come when the Ukrainian people will force the invaders to fully recognize reality."
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