The tactic by NATO of repeatedly saying that the military alliance would not make a military response to Russia’s invasion in Ukraine is a strange one, according to former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Tony Blair, British news portal The Guardian reports.
In an opinion piece published on Tuesday, March 16, on the web site of the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, the politician (68) wrote that he understands and accepts there is not any political support for direct military engagement by NATO, but the West should be «clear-eyed about what Putin is doing.»
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«When he is threatening NATO, even stoking fears of nuclear conflict, in pursuit of his attempt to topple by force a peaceful nation’s democratically elected president and wage war on its people, there is something incongruous about our repeated reassurance to him that we will not react with force,» the former UK head of government wrote.
«I accept the reasoning behind our stance. But suppose he uses chemical weapons or a tactical nuclear weapon, or tries to destroy Kyiv as he did Aleppo in Syria, without any regard to the loss of civilian life – is it sensible to tell him in advance that whatever he does militarily, we will rule out any form of military response? Maybe that is our position and maybe that is the right position, but continually signalling it, and removing doubt in his mind, is a strange tactic,» evaluated Tony Blair as quoted by The Guardian.
Blair: NATO pursues strange tactic on Ukraine
