Austin: "If Ukraine loses, NATO will fight Russia"
Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin warned that if Ukraine loses in a full-scale war, the entire NATO will have to fight Russia.
Lloyd Austin said this on February 29 at a hearing of the US House of Representatives Armed Services Committee, Censor.NET reports citing European Pravda.
Although the hearing was primarily about the incident with Austin's hospitalization earlier this year, which he did not inform either the White House or Congress about in advance, congressmen asked several questions about the extent to which Ukraine needs US military assistance.
The head of the U.S. Defense Department emphasized that the approval of additional funding for Kyiv is important to prevent a situation in the world "where one country can redraw the borders of its neighbors and illegally seize their sovereign territories."
"We know that if Putin succeeds, he will not stop. He will continue to be more aggressive in the region. And other leaders around the world, other autocrats will be looking at this, and they will be encouraged by the fact that this happened and we failed to support a democratic state," he added.
Later, Austin clarified that if Ukraine loses on the battlefield, the Baltic states could be at risk, first of all.
"If you are a Baltic country, you are extremely worried about being next. They know Putin. They know what he is capable of. And frankly speaking, if Ukraine falls, I really believe that NATO will fight Russia," the official said.
