NATO increases presence in eastern part of alliance: Stoltenberg

By Merve Aydogan

ANKARA (AA) - NATO has increased its presence in the eastern flank of the alliance and it is set to deploy its response force for the first time in its history, the alliance chief announced on Tuesday.

Speaking at a joint press conference with Polish President Andrzej Duda, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said: "We have increased our presence in eastern part of the alliance and today we are, for the first time in our history, deploying the NATO Response Force. Today French troops are arriving in Romania as the lead elements of this force."

This came as the Russia-Ukraine war entered its sixth day on Tuesday, with the latest reports indicating that Russian troops were heading toward the capital Kyiv.

Last week on Thursday, NATO decided to activate its defense plans enabling it to deploy capabilities and forces more easily in NATO territory.

Stoltenberg also stressed that the military alliance "is not going to be part of the conflict."

"So, NATO is not going to send troops into Ukraine or planes into Ukrainian airspace," he added.

So far, at least 136 civilians, including 13 children, have been killed in Ukraine and 400 others, including 26 children, injured, according to UN figures.

Around 660,000 people have fled Ukraine to neighboring countries, the UN Refugee Agency said on Tuesday.​​​​​​​