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Added on the 04/05/2023 14:25:19 - Copyright : AFPTV - First images
Sweden joining NATO shows Russian President Vladimir Putin "failed" in his Ukrainian war strategy of weakening the alliance, its chief Jens Stoltenberg says. The Kremlin's invasion not only prompted formerly non-aligned nations Sweden and Finland to come under NATO's defence umbrella, but now "Ukraine is closer to NATO membership than ever before," Stoltenberg adds. SOUNDBITE
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is welcomed by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in Madrid, where the two are due to sign a security agreement aimed at increasing Madrid's military aid to Kyiv. The visit comes as Ukraine battles a Russian ground offensive in the northeastern Kharkiv region which began on May 10 in Moscow's biggest territorial advance in 18 months. IMAGES
NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg says it is "not too late" for Ukraine to win the war, promising President Volodymyr Zelensky that more support is on the way to Kyiv as Russian forces advance. "Ukraine has been outgunned for months, forced to ration its ammunition... But it's not too late for Ukraine to prevail," the NATO secretary general says at a press conference with Zelensky. SOUNDBITE
NATO forces cross the Vistula River at Korzeniewo in Poland as part of the US-led defence alliance's Exercise Dragon 24, involving around 4,500 soldiers and almost 1,000 vehicles. Dragon 24 is itself part of Exercise Steadfast Defender 24, NATO's largest military exercise since the Cold War, which is designed to test its defences in the face of Russia's war on Ukraine. IMAGES
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky leaves his hotel in Tirana, Albania, where he arrived late Tuesday, to meet with leaders from southeast Europe, seeking to keep support and weapons flowing to Kyiv as Russia makes gains on the battlefield two years after invading its neighbour. IMAGES