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Ukraine on the path to joining NATO, says deputy Mircea Geoanǎ
After two years of fighting and brutal warfare in Ukraine, NATO deputy Mircea Geoanǎ says the stakes of the war could not be higher for the West. Ian Bremmer spoke with Geoanǎ on GZERO World at the Munich Security Conference and asked him to give a sober assessment of the war so far, as political battles and mounting crisis fatigue in the US and EU put military and financial assistance for Kyiv in jeopardy. Geoanǎ says the West can't afford to desert Ukraine in its time of need.
“Ukraine will become a member of NATO, it will become a member of the EU,” the NATO deputy warns, “If they don’t prevail, there is no NATO, there’s no EU.”
NATO and Ukraine are getting closer every day, Geoanǎ argues, they're becoming more interoperable with each other, and a level of trust has developed with Kyiv. Abandoning the fight now would be a broader sign of the West’s collective ability to deal with global security challenges coming from elsewhere in the world, like Iran and North Korea. This war is bigger than Ukraine, which is why it’s so important for allies to stay united.
Watch full episode here: Can Ukraine win the war?
Catch GZERO World with Ian Bremmer every week online and on US public television. Check local listings.
Can Ukraine win the war?
Are NATO allies as united in their support for Kyiv as they were when Russia began its invasion of Ukraine two years ago? That was the question at the top of everyone’s minds at the Munich Security Conference, where world leaders gathered to discuss the biggest challenges to global security. On GZERO World, Ian Bremmer sat down with Deputy Secretary General Mirceǎ Geoana on the sidelines of Munich to discuss the ongoing war in Ukraine and what the conflict means for the future of the NATO alliance.
“Ukraine is more than Ukraine, and Ukraine is more than European security,” Geoanǎ explains, “Ukraine is an indicator of the willingness and the capacity of the West to be able to cope with challenges coming from China or anywhere else.”
Geoanǎ also called the recent death of Alexei Navalny a “wake-up call” for the West and challenged President Trump’s recent comments about allowing Russia to invade NATO countries that don’t meet the target of spending 2% of GDP on defense. While he admits Europe could do better, he points out that NATO allies are well above the 2% target on aggregate due to heightened security concerns in former Soviet countries and the Baltics.
“In the end, this alliance, [which will celebrate] 75 years in the next few weeks, will be as indispensable to America and to all of us like it’s been since the inception,” Geoanǎ says.
Catch GZERO World with Ian Bremmer every week online and on US public television. Check local listings.
Two years of war in Ukraine: Power players at the Munich Security Conference weigh in
Listen: It’s been two years since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. While Ukrainians remain steadfast in their fight, political battles and crisis fatigue in the US and EU make a victory much more elusive. How long can Western allies remain united in their support for Kyiv? Does Ukraine have any chance of winning in this environment? On the GZERO World Podcast, Ian Bremmer sits with NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoanǎ for a hard look at progress on the battlefield and Ukraine’s future in NATO, just as news broke of the death of Russian dissident Alexei Navalny. Later, Ian talks with another power player at the conference and on the continent, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, about European security, the threat of AI-generated misinformation, and Greece's landmark LGBTQ+ rights law.
Subscribe to the GZERO World Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or your preferred podcast platform, to receive new episodes as soon as they're published.
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NATO unity & how to end war in Ukraine
What a difference a year makes. As the world marks the first anniversary of the war in Ukraine, Zelensky's military has performed far better against Russia than even some of its staunchest supporters expected when the war began. And Putin's illegal invasion of a sovereign neighbor has rallied the West to Kyiv's cause.
Ian Bremmer is on the ground in Germany for the annual Munich Security Conference to ask world leaders how much further the West is willing to go in its support for Ukraine.
Estonia’s Prime Minister Kaja Kallas has been called Europe’s new Iron Lady, and says no Russian war crime should go unpunished. And NATO’s Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoană offers a candid assessment of a war that has no clear end in sight. Ian speaks to them both.
Watch "GZERO World with Ian Bremmer" on public television stations across the US. Check local listings.
Podcast: Ukraine’s strength, Russia’s stubbornness - and the uncertainty of war to come
Listen: Ian Bremmer is on the ground in Germany for the annual Munich Security Conference to ask world leaders how much further the West is willing to go in its support for Kiev. As the world marks the first anniversary of the war in Ukraine, Zelensky's military has performed far better against Russia than even some of its staunchest supporters expected when the war began. And Putin's illegal invasion of a soverign neighbor has rallied the West to Kiev's cause.
Estonia’s Prime Minister Kaja Kallas has been called Europe’s new Iron Lady, and says no Russian war crime should go unpunished. And NATO’s Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoană offers a candid assessment of a war that has no clear end in sight. On the GZERO World podcast, Ian speaks to them both about the lessons learned during year one of the war…and what might happen next.
Subscribe to the GZERO World Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or your preferred podcast platform, to receive new episodes as soon as they're published.
War in Ukraine heading to "violent" new phase, warns NATO's Mircea Geoană
Ukraine's military has lasted far longer than anyone expected when the war in Ukraine began one year ago. Much of that success comes down to Ukraine's ability to mobilize the energy of the nation, as well as material support from NATO and its allies. On the one-year anniversary of Russia's invasion, GZERO World traveled to the Munich Security Conference and spoke with NATO Deputy Secretary General, Mircea Geoană, for his candid assessment of the state of the war.
Geoană sees a "very significant and violent" new phase in the offensive and, despite public unity, acknowledges there are internal divisions within NATO about how best to engage and support Ukraine. Plus, there's still an open question about Ukraine's path toward NATO membership, and whether joining the alliance is in Kyiv's best interest. Ian Bremmer asks Geoană about Ukraine joining NATO, the lessons the alliance has taken away from Russia's fighting capacity, and what that means moving forward as the war enters its second year.
Catch Bremmer's full interview with Geoană in this week's episode of "GZERO World with Ian Bremmer," airing on public television stations in the US. Check local listings.
Why neither NATO nor Russia wants to escalate war in Ukraine
Don't use the "e" word. NATO's increased military support of Ukraine is not an escalation, says Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoană, it is a "dynamic adjustment." Geoană spoke to Ian Bremmer on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, an annual gathering of world leaders, diplomats, and security experts in the Bavarian city. "The fundamental job of NATO is to defend allies, territory, population," Geoană told Ian Bremmer, "there's no escalation, there is a changing nature of the battlefield, and it's normal."
The two discussed the war a year after Russia's invasion, how far Western support for Ukraine should go, and how soon NATO might accept Ukraine as a full-fledged member of the alliance. Catch GZERO's full interview with Deputy Secretary Geoana on this week's episode of "GZERO World with Ian Bremmer," airing on US public television stations nationwide. Check local listings.
NATO's confidence as Ukraine enters year 2 of war
In 2022, NATO got its groove back. Sweden and Finland applied for membership after decades of thinking it was safer to stay neutral. Germany announced a huge increase in defense spending, and walked back their own red line of sending weapons to conflict zones. In 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea, and only 3 of NATO’s then-28 members met the target of spending 2% of GDP on defense. Now, nine countries do, and 19 more have plans to hit 2% by 2024. Still, it’s a hard argument to make as global inflation limits the buying power of those military budgets.
Ian Bremmer spoke with NATO’s Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoană about the lessons learned during year one of the war and what comes next. Despite the cohesion, there’s tension brewing: NATO members have very different ideas about how far to go in supporting Ukraine; they blame each other for delays in weapon deliveries; And Turkey, of course, still holding up Finland and Sweden’s membership; no to mention there’s a limit to global trust and information sharing.
Watch the interview on this week's episode of "GZERO World with Ian Bremmer," airing on US public television stations nationwide. Check your local listings.
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