BRUSSELS, October 12. /TASS/. NATO has no plans to be drawn into military activities in Ukraine but will continue to support Kiev, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin stated.

"Now, let me be clear: NATO is a defensive alliance," he said following a NATO defense ministers meeting.

Austin added that the bloc would not be drawn into the conflict. "But we will stand up for Ukraine's right to defend itself," he stressed. "We will continue to strengthen this alliance for the challenges to come and we will defend the sovereignty and territory of every NATO ally. America's commitment to that mission is ironclad, and so is our commitment to Article Five," the Pentagon chief emphasized.

Article Five of the 1949 North Atlantic Treaty stipulates a collective response to an armed attack against one or more of the alliance’s member states.