NATO chief approves Ukraine’s military offensive in Russia’s Kursk region: ‘It has the right to defend itself’

Ukraine was within its rights to launch an offensive in Russia’s Kursk region as an act of self-defence, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg told German daily Die Welt.

The offensive launched on August 6 caught the Kremlin off guard. kyiv claims to have captured dozens of settlements and more than 1,200 square kilometers of territory.

“Ukraine has the right to defend itself. According to international law, this right does not end at the border,” Stoltenberg told the newspaper.

Ukraine has the right to defend itself. According to international law, this right does not end at the border.

“Russian soldiers, tanks and bases there (Kursk) are legitimate targets under international law,” he said.

The offensive also surprised kyiv’s allies. Stoltenberg said that Ukraine “did not share its planning” with NATO and that the military alliance “played no role.”

Stoltenberg also welcomed Germany’s commitment to remain Europe’s top military donor and the world’s second-largest, as Berlin prepares to cut its aid to Ukraine next year.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s government was heavily criticised for last week’s decision, although it assured that Germany would continue to supply the Ukrainian army with the equipment it needs.

The Kursk offensive has made little difference to the front lines in eastern Ukraine, where Russia continues its territorial advance.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has acknowledged that his army is facing an “extremely difficult” situation near the strategic town of Pokrovsk in the Donetsk region as Russian forces advance.

Russia bans 92 US citizens from entering

Russia announced Wednesday that it has banned 92 US citizens from entering its territory, including journalists from several major media outlets accused of spreading “false information” about the Russian army fighting in Ukraine.

“Entry into Russia is permanently closed to 92 American citizens, business representatives, figures in the field of research and culture, journalists and media,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Employees of the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Washington Post are on this listwhich adds to the sanctions already taken by Russia against hundreds of other American citizens and those of other Western countries.

Russ
ia accuses these journalists of being “involved in the production and dissemination of false information about Russia and the Russian armed forces” and of participating in a “hybrid war unleashed by the United States.”

The list of 92 people published on Wednesday also includes military personnel, university professors, business leaders, politicians and members of the American judicial system.

Relations between Russia and the United States have deteriorated significantly since the offensive in Ukraine in February 2022, which the Kremlin presents as a proxy conflict with NATO.

The United States is Ukraine’s most important military and financial supporter.