Former NATO secretary general hopes for peaceful end to conflict in Ukraine

13:19, 11.09.2015 1 min read

Former NATO Secretary General (1009-2014) Anders Fogh Rasmussen has reiterated there is no way to settle the conflict in eastern Ukraine except via peaceful dialog, however he said that if Russia continues to back the separatists then western countries will have to consider supplying weapons to Ukraine.

"If it is clear that it is Russia and the Russian backed separatists who are responsible for the breakdown of the ceasefire, then it is time for the West to consider the provision of weapons to Ukraine," said Rasmussen at the 12th Annual Meeting of the Yalta European Strategy (YES) in Kyiv on Friday.

However, he stressed that the provision of weapons should only be considered as a Plan B if the Minsk agreements fail.

The 12th Yalta European Strategy (YES) Annual Meeting entitled "At Risk: How the New Ukraine's Fate Affects Europe and the World", organized by YES, in partnership with the Victor Pinchuk Foundation, takes place in Kyiv on September 10-12, 2015.