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NATO is "back to basics" defending Europe from an aggressive Russia
NATO’s renewed strength and commitment to its original mission of countering an aggressive Russia in Europe was on full display at the alliance's 75th-anniversary summit in Washington, DC. On GZERO World, Ian Bremmer sat down with Poland Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski on the sidelines of the summit to discuss the mood among NATO allies and Sikorski’s assessment of the battlefield two and a half years into a bloody, brutal war with no end in sight. Sikorski, whose country shares a 300+ mile border with Ukraine, remains optimistic that Russian defeat is inevitable.
“Putin misjudged us. He thought Ukraine would just cave in and he’d walk into a victory parade,” Sikorski says, “I don’t think in his worst dreams he anticipated we’d be spending hundreds of billions on arms and ammunition and that two years on, he’d still be controlling only 20% of Ukrainian territory.”
Sikorski says that Putin’s war crimes, including attacks on civilian infrastructure and a children’s hospital, have only strengthened Western resolve. He points to the heavy casualties and economic strain Russia faces, predicting a potential collapse of the Russian economy if the war continues. He notes Ukraine’s strategic victories against a much larger army, such as taking out the Russian fleet in the Black Sea without a navy. Sikorski says it’s in NATO’s best interest to keep sending weapons and financial aid to Kyiv because the cost of not sending assistance will ultimately be much higher.
“It's the cheapest and most effective way to signal to Putin, but also to others,” Sikorski insists, “that regaining what you regard as a renegade province is harder than you think."
Watch the full episode: Ukraine can still win this war, says Poland's FM
Season 7 of GZERO World with Ian Bremmer, the award-winning weekly global affairs series, launches nationwide on public television stations (check local listings).
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Polish truckers block several border crossings with Ukraine in protest at what they say is Ukrainian haulers' free rein in Poland that is hurting their business.
Hard Numbers: Truck backup at Polish border, Maldives says bye to India’s troops, Australia clinches Cricket World Cup, Swift postpones Rio show amid deadly heat
3,000: For the past 11 days, Polish truckers have blocked roads leading to three border crossings with Ukraine, protesting what they call “government inaction” over a loss of business to foreign competitors since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Traffic is now backed up 30 kilometers on one of the routes, with an estimated 3,000 trucks waiting to cross.
75: The recently elected president of the Maldives, Mohamed Muizzu, formally asked India to withdraw its 75-person military contingent from the country. Muizzu won the presidential election in September on an “India Out platform” and is seen as more closely aligned with China.
6: On Sunday, Australia won a record-extending sixth Cricket World Cup against India with a six-wicket victory at Narendra Modi Stadium. Despite starting the tournament sidelined by a broken left hand, Australian player Travis Head scored 137 runs and was named man of the match, becoming only the seventh player to score a century in a men's World Cup final.
140: On Saturday, megastar Taylor Swift postponed her second concert in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, after a 23-year-old woman died at her Friday show, apparently due to the sweltering combination of temperature and humidity, which felt like 140 degrees Fahrenheit, the highest index Rio has ever recorded. In a handwritten note shared on her social media, Swift said she had a “shattered heart.” “There's very little information I have other than the fact that she was so incredibly beautiful and far too young,” she wrote.