Photo: nato.int
Unlike the claim in the post, NATO is not sending weapons directly to Ukraine. NATO member-states individually are sending weapons and aid, together with other countries that are not NATO members, and that is clearly stressed on NATO’s website by Secretary-General, Jens Stoltenberg. It is not true either that NATO has not sent aid to Slovenia after it was hit by the floods. As published on NATO’s website, aid has been sent by a few European countries and the USA. In addition, North Macedonia, as a NATO member, has also sent aid to Slovenia, writes Truthmeter.mk.
Under the content-sharing agreement between Truthmeter.mk and Meta.mk, we republish the text below:
A post on Facebook (screenshot here) is giving false information on the activities of NATO by making a parallel between the war in Ukraine and the floods in Slovenia.
IF ONLY NATO WOULD SEND EXPRESS AID TO THE COUNTRIES HIT BY “NATURAL” DISASTERS, AS IT ABUNDANTLY SENDS WEAPONS…, states the post we are fact-checking.
Firstly, it is not NATO that is sending weapons directly to Ukraine. That is done by the member-states individually, and that is specified on the website of the Alliance and also stressed by the Secretary-General, Jens Stoltenberg.
Individual NATO member-states are sending weapons, ammunition, and many types of light and heavy military equipment, including anti-tank and air defense systems, howitzers, unmanned aerial vehicles and tanks. To date, NATO allies provided Ukraine with a billion euro worth of military equipment. Allied forces are training Ukrainian troops on how to use this equipment. All this makes a difference on the battlefield every day, thereby helping Ukraine sustain its right to self-defense which is enshrined in the United Nations Charter, specifies NATO’s website in the part explaining the actions of NATO allies helping Ukraine.
Following the extraordinary meeting of NATO’s Foreign Affairs Ministers together with their Ukrainian counterpart (last year in April), Stoltenberg stressed that NATO was not sending weapons directly and was not planning to get involved in the war.
It is our task to prevent escalation. NATO will not be directly involved. It is not sending direct capacities, but providing assistance in a different manner, said then the Chief of the Alliance.
The weaponry, on the other hand, is sent by the member-states. According to Stoltenberg, it cannot be called offensive, because it is used for defensive purposes due to the fact that Ukraine is an attacked party, and its right to self-defense is enshrined in the United Nations Charter.
Concerning the aid sent to Slovenia, which was hit by big floods, it is not true that NATO did not send assistance.
Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (ЕADRCC) is NATO’s principal civil emergency response mechanism in the Euro-Atlantic area. It is active all year round, operational on a 24/7 basis, and involves all NATO allies and partner countries. The Centre functions as a clearing house system for coordinating both requests for and offers of assistance mainly in case of natural and man-made disasters.
On 7th August, NATO Secretary-General, Stoltenberg, spoke by phone with Prime Minister Robert Golob, expressing his condolences and NATO’s strong solidarity with Slovenia.
Upon Slovenia’s request for assistance, NATO’s Disaster Response Coordination Centre immediately notified all 31 Allies and 35 partners of your needs. I welcome that NATO Allies stepped up with immediate offers of support including, helicopters, modular bridges, excavators and engineering expertise. This is NATO solidarity in action. We will continue to work closely with you in the days and weeks ahead. The increasing frequency of extreme weather highlights the profound impact of climate change. NATO is committed to addressing climate change and its impact on our security, Stoltenberg said.
Following Slovenia’s request for assistance via NATO’s Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (EADRCC), as published on the website of NATO, Spain offered one heavy CH-47 helicopter with up to 25 personnel, including crew and supporting staff. Bulgaria, Croatia, Germany and France have offered support including helicopters, excavators, prefabricated bridges, and engineering teams. The United States has also deployed staff to Ljubljana to assess the situation and determine urgent humanitarian needs.
North Macedonia, as a NATO member, also sent assistance to Slovenia.
On 8th August, the Government adopted a Decision to send to Slovenia on a humanitarian operation 100 representatives of ARM to help in the regions hit by the disastrous floods. The soldiers sent for a 30-day period are ready to leave immediately and be available to the Slovenian state in remediation of the consequences of the floods, informed the Government.
From all of the above-noted, we can conclude that it is not true that NATO is sending weapons to Ukraine, as the fact-checked post claims. Weapons and assistance is sent by the member-states individually, which is clearly specified on NATO’s website, and also notified by the Secretary-General Stoltenberg. Regarding the assistance for Slovenia, that was hit by the floodings, it is not true that NATO did not send assistance. Upon the request of Slovenia via NATO’s Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (EADRCC), as published on NATO’s website, several European countries as well as the USA have sent assistance. North Macedonia, as a NATO member-state has also sent assistance to Slovenia.
According to all of the above-noted, the post fact-checked is assessed as untrue.
