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NATO may ship tanks to Ukraine at some point, Secretary General says

According to the Secretary General, the conflict in Ukraine may be long, and increase of arms shipments is the road to peace for the Ukrainians

STOCKHOLM, January 9. /TASS/. It is possible that NATO will supply heavy tanks to Ukraine, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in an interview for Svenska Dagbladet published Monday.

"No, I do not rule that out. But I cannot promise anything as well," Stoltenberg said, answering a question if he rules out shipment of US-made Abrams or German-made Leopard tanks to Ukraine.

According to the Secretary General, the conflict in Ukraine may be long, and increase of arms shipments is the road to peace for the Ukrainians.

"Most likely, this war will end at a negotiations table. What the Ukrainians will be able to achieve will depend on the balance of forces on the ground. If we want Ukraine to stay independent, then we must continue supplying it with weapons," Stoltenberg claimed.

The Secretary General also noted that NATO has already shipped more weapons to the Ukrainian army than one could imagine, adding that Ukrainian armed forces will also receive US-made Patriot missile air defense systems soon.

"We stay in a constant dialogue regarding what weapons they will receive. For example, now they will receive [German-made] Marder armored vehicles. However, I’d rather not speculate which modern systems will be next," he continued.

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