By Bond Robertson 
On Tuesday, Jens Stoltenberg met with the Norwegian Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of Defense before the meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Oslo.
Then he and Jonas Gahr Staur held a press conference on several topics that will be discussed when almost all the foreign ministers of the Defense Alliance arrive tomorrow.
The main topic will be the recent clashes in Kosovo.
On Monday evening, clashes erupted between NATO-led peacekeepers and Serb demonstrators, during a demonstration against the results of the local elections in the north.
30 peacekeepers were injured, and 52 protesters, according to Reuters.
Polish NATO soldiers guarded northern Kosovo on Tuesday, where violent clashes took place between protesters and NATO-led KFOR forces on Monday.
Photo: Armend Niemani/AFP
Polish NATO soldiers guarded northern Kosovo on Tuesday, where violent clashes took place between protesters and NATO-led KFOR forces on Monday.
Photo: Armend Niemani/AFP
On Tuesday, NATO will apparently deploy additional forces to Kosovo as a result.
Such attacks are unacceptable and must be stopped. He added that KFOR would do its utmost to defend and protect their safety and the safety of the citizens of Kosovo.
– We decided to deploy 700 soldiers of the ORF Reserve Force in the Western Balkans, and put an additional battalion with reserve forces on high alert, so that it can also be deployed if necessary.
The background to the conflict is the fact that for several weeks a Kosovo Albanian party lost local elections in the Serb-dominated region of northern Kosovo.
NATO foreign ministers in Oslo
Almost all NATO foreign ministers will come to Oslo tomorrow for an “informal” meeting until Thursday.
The ministers, who are in Oslo, are preparing for NATO’s largest meeting in Vilnius on 11-12. July. Informal or not, there are likely to be many important discussions in the coming week.
Storr greeted the NATO chief outside the Prime Minister’s office.
Photo: NTB
Storr greeted the NATO chief outside the Prime Minister’s office.
Photo: NTB
On Tuesday, Stoltenberg raised the issue of Sweden’s NATO membership. He said that NATO is in constant contact with the Turkish authorities regarding Sweden’s membership in NATO.
Tobias Bellström from Sweden was present. His country is still waiting for Türkiye and Hungary to agree to join NATO.
The Turkish foreign minister will not attend the meeting, because he must help form a new parliament there.
– All allies, including Türkiye, agreed to invite new members. Finland became a full member, and now Sweden should become as well.
– We are working on this, and hopefully everything will be in place for the meeting in Vilnius. Nothing is certain, but we must work towards it.
He reiterated again that Sweden is in a much safer position today than it was before I applied, and that it was “inconceivable” that the Swedes would be attacked without NATO reacting.
Flags of both Norway and NATO outside the Prime Minister’s Office on Tuesday.
Photo: Heiko Junge/NTB
Flags of both Norway and NATO outside the Prime Minister’s Office on Tuesday.
Photo: Heiko Junge/NTB
Ukraine is still the most important topic
The most important topic is undoubtedly Ukraine, and the situation on the ground now.
– Stoltenberg said in a speech to the Norwegian Atlantic Committee on Tuesday that Putin’s war of aggression against Ukraine marks the end of the world as we know it.
There he participated in a panel discussion with Foreign Minister Anken Huitfeldt, and delivered a serious message.
Great-power rivalry is growing, our values of democracy and the international legal order are under pressure, and there is a full-scale war in Europe.
Here, the Russian authorities claim that one of the drones has crashed.
Photo: AP
Here, the Russian authorities claim that one of the drones has crashed.
Photo: AP
Storr said later in the day that it was appropriate for Norway to take part in pilot training, after the United States had given the thumbs up.
Earlier, Stoltenberg received questions from NRK about the drone attack on Moscow, where President Putin’s home is located Can was one of the targets.
At least that’s what a source in the Russian Parliament claims. Ukrainian authorities deny having anything to do with the attack.
If Ukraine is behind this, what are the consequences of further military support?
– We support Ukraine and we are fully confident that NATO countries will not only not sit idly by, but will also increase their support, – said Stoltenberg, noting that it was Putin who started the war of conquest.
The Ukrainian Air Force shot down a drone over the capital, Kiev, on Tuesday night.
Photo: Evgeniy Maloletka/AP
The Ukrainian Air Force shot down a drone over the capital, Kiev, on Tuesday night.
Photo: Evgeniy Maloletka/AP
NATO has the right to support Ukraine. It does not make us participants in the war, but it helps Ukraine to preserve its right to self-defense.
When asked by NTB about how they interpret the repeated attacks against Kiev in Ukraine, Stoltenberg said:
The intensified Russian attacks on Kiev and other cities show the brutality of this war and how Russian attacks continue to hit civilian targets, but it also underscores the importance of our continued support.
– I’m sure the NATO foreign ministers will confirm it at the meeting here in Oslo.