TEHRAN - A former senior NATO official urges all “responsible governments” in the world to press Russia to end the war on Ukraine.

“All responsible governments should exercise strong pressure to stop Ukraine war,” Alessandro Minuto-Rizzo, who was NATO deputy secretary general from 2001 to 2007, tells the Tehran Times in an exclusive interview.

NATO has been supplying arms to Ukraine since the country came under attack by Russia on February 24, 2022. However, some analysts criticize NATO for its support, claiming it will lead to the prolongation of the war. 

Yet, Mr.  Minuto-Rizzo  says no NATO member “wants a war on Russia or to threaten this country in its integrity.”

Following is the text of the interview:

Q: The Ukraine war entered its second year on Feb. 24, 2023. Could you imagine the war to drag on so long?

A: When the war started- to my surprise- I thought that it could be stopped in a few weeks with some reasonable agreement. Remember that the war started under the wrong assumption that Russia could easily win over a country that would quickly surrender. Instead of accepting a quite different reality, Russia has intensified its efforts to this day with destruction and heavy casualties on the territory of Ukraine.

Q: Some argue that the NATO expansion to the East prompted Russia to invade Ukraine. What is your opinion?

A: At the beginning this was the reason given by Moscow to justify its aggression. If we look at the hard facts, Ukraine has never asked for NATO membership. There was only an invitation in a declaration by

the NATO Summit of 2008 and it was never repeated afterwards. Let’s remember, among other things, that the German Chancellor publicly stated a few days before the invasion that Ukraine accession to NATO “is not in agenda and will not be in agenda”.

Q: Some politicians and analysts are saying that the U.S. and European members of NATO are prolonging and fanning the flames of war by shipping heavy arms to Ukraine. Do you agree with such views?

A: It is clear that Russia is much more powerful than Ukraine and that in a prolonged war Ukraine could be defeated; this is the reason why a large number of countries is providing military support, in order to help the country to resist such an unjustified aggression. Many countries and not only from NATO and the European Union. This decision is not meant to prolong the war or to attack Russia, but it is a necessity to protect the independence of Ukraine.

Q: Before the war, you were against bringing Ukraine into the NATO alliance. Do you still hold the same view?

A: We have to look at this issue with some wisdom. In principle every independent country has the right to decide its own foreign policy. And NATO is a defensive organization. On the other hand, the integrity

of Ukraine can be guaranteed in different ways without necessarily becoming a member. It is a matter of good faith and practical solutions are possible. I don’t think that this is the most important issue.

Q: How can this disastrous war be brought to an end?

A: It is easier to start a war than to finish it. Things have become much more complicated with the current intensification of hostilities. This is the most difficult question. I would advocate to go back to the situation before the invasion. But I know that this is difficult. Principles sometimes are not sufficient. In any case the amount of suffering and the heavy loss of lives is such that all responsible governments should exercise a strong pressure to stop this unnecessary war.

Q: What is your prediction of the post-Ukraine war?

A: It is difficult to make predictions, but I think in the future Ukraine will do all its best to join the European Union. Military alliances are at a much lower level. Parliamentary democracy will remain and

we see with our eyes that the invasion has provoked a strong sense on national identity that was not there before.

Q: Is it advisable to imagine that after the Ukraine war NATO may expand to include countries outside Europe, such as Japan, South Korea and Australia?

A: Membership and partnerships are different things. Japan and Australia will not become members of NATO and nobody is thinking about this possibility. But they may become partners with flexible arrangements and formulas, as it is already happening with a large number of countries in 3 continents.

Q: Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, some political-security strategists in the West have said that the war is a confrontation between Biden and Putin and has the potential of a nuclear war. What is your opinion?

A: I don’t think that this is a war of the West against Russia, because nobody wants a war on Russia or to threaten this country in its integrity. There is no reason for such a policy. The West is supporting

Ukraine but there are unwritten red lines, and Russian territory has never been touched. I repeat that the intention is only to support an aggressed independent country. All the suffering and the destruction

are in the territory of Ukraine.

The use of nuclear weapons would be a tragedy that would change the face of the world. We should be very careful in not using weapons of mass destruction of all kinds.