Russia not abandoning plans to gain full control over Ukraine - Stoltenberg

This was stated by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in an interview with DPA, Ukrinform reports.

"There is no indication that President Putin has changed his overall objective of this war. This is to control Ukraine. They have mobilized many new troops. Many of them are trained by now. They have demonstrated a willingness to endure painful losses and they are turning to other authoritarian regimes, including Iran, to get more ammunition and more weapons. This is not over. Wars are unpredictable, but we have to prepare for the long haul and also for new Russian offensives. We should not underestimate Russia," the secretary general noted.

He emphasized that NATO and its allies support Ukraine's right to self-defense, which is stipulated by the UN Charter.

"We also need to understand the context: massive Russian attacks on civilian infrastructure aiming at depriving Ukrainian civilians of water, heating, and electricity during the winter. President Putin tries to turn winter into a weapon against civilians. This is not an attack on military targets with civilian collateral damage. This is a massive attack on civilians because millions of Ukrainians are deprived from these basic services," Stoltenberg said.

He noted that in the wake of this, it is very difficult to imagine a return to "normal" relations with Russia in the future, even after the war ends.

"What kind of relations there will be with Russia in the future will depend on Russia's behavior. I think it's hard to imagine that we will end up again being so dependent on critical strategic commodities like energy. Because dependence on Russia has created points of attack that Russia is now trying to use to stop us from supporting Ukraine. Dependence on gas has made us vulnerable," the NATO chief stated.