NATO deems Russia its ‘most significant and direct threat’

Followed by-INA  
NATO declared Russia the “most significant and direct threat” to its members’ peace and security on Wednesday and vowed to strengthen support for Ukraine, even as that country’s leader chided the alliance for not doing more to help it defeat Moscow.
 
The military organization’s condemnation was not wholly surprising: Its chief earlier said Russia’s war in Ukraine had created Europe’s biggest security crisis since World War II. But it was a sobering about-face for an alliance that a decade ago called Moscow a strategic partner.
 
NATO also issued a warning about China, accusing it of bullying its neighbors and forming a “strategic partnership” with Moscow that poses a challenge to the West.
 
 NATO leaders have agreed at a summit in Vilnius that Ukraine's future lies within the alliance but stopped short of handing Kyiv the invitation or timetable for accession that the country has been seeking.

At the same time, NATO dropped the requirement for Ukraine to fulfil a so-called Membership Action Plan (MAP), effectively removing a hurdle on Kyiv's way into the alliance.

"Ukraine's future is in NATO," a declaration agreed by the leaders on Tuesday said, adding Kyiv's Euro-Atlantic integration had moved beyond the need for a Membership Action Plan.