The President of the NATO Military Committee, Admiral Rob Bauer, said today in Prague that the right of an attacked country to defend itself does not stop at its borders, and that Ukraine's attacks on Russian territory are legitimate, but that the Allies respect the political decisions of some of their members to introduce restrictions on delivered weapons. .
"Every attacked country has the right to defend itself, and that right does not stop at its borders. According to the international law of war, you have the right to attack those who attack you. There are valid reasons for that, to weaken the enemy, to cut the logistical supply chains of the front. War the right allows this," Admiral Bauer told reporters during the three-day session of the NATO Military Committee in Prague.
Another NATO man emphasized that if he, as a soldier, were asked whether Ukraine should be allowed to use weapons given to it by the West to target targets inside Russia, he would answer - yes.
"Another thing is that countries that send weapons have the right to set restrictions, because they feel responsible for their use. That is already for political debate," said the admiral.
The Chief of the General Staff of the Czech Army, General Karel Žehka, added that his country does not set any conditions or restrictions for the weapons it sends to Ukraine and leaves it to be used at its discretion.
"But on the other hand, there are sovereign political decisions among the allies, and all aspects must be taken into account, including the possible escalation of the conflict due to these attacks," General Žehka said at a press conference with Admiral Bauer.
The head of the NATO Military Committee warned that relations with Russia did not deteriorate now, due to the delivery of weapons to Ukraine and the question of whether it is allowed to target targets in Russia, but already in 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea.
"Then there was a big change in relations. We tried to be partners with Russia for 20 years. It was not the behavior of NATO, but the behavior of Russia that disrupted those relations," Admiral Bauer said.
The head of the NATO Military Committee, whose composition includes the chiefs of general staff of the armies of the member countries of the Western military alliance, emphasized that everything NATO does to help Ukraine is in accordance with international law and the Charter of the United Nations.
"It may not contribute to relations with Russia, but NATO is doing what is allowed," said Bauer.
The NATO official said that in the member countries, the economy will also have to be ready to become more involved in defense and security.
"Generals win battles but state economies win wars," Bauer said.
The NATO Military Committee meets three times a year, twice in Brussels, and once in one of the member countries, this year from September 13 to 15 in Prague.
Opening the working part of the meeting, the President of the Czech Republic, Petr Pavel, called on the generals to reject political correctness and present military assessments and proposals to politicians much more boldly and openly, because the past was a bipolar world when the rivals were the West and the East, and increasingly it is a question of a conflict between democracies and various autocracy.
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