On Oct. 6, Adm. Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, chairman of the NATO Military Committee, brought the military representatives of all 32 member states to Kiev for talks with Ukraine’s defense staff. “We are here in full strength, sending a clear message: the bond between NATO and Ukraine is strong and unbreakable,” Dragone said, according to a NATO press release issued Oct. 7. “Despite Russia’s unprovoked aggression against Ukraine and its reckless hybrid activities in NATO countries, we stand with Ukraine in the heroic defense of its sovereignty, its territorial integrity and the future of its people.”

According to the release, the talks covered Ukraine’s military priorities and lessons learned in new forms of warfare, and how the Alliance can better prepare for future threats. The Kyiv Post reported that it was the full committee’s first visit to Ukraine since April 2018, following up on the North Atlantic Council’s visit in June. The delegation visited the Wall of Remembrance of the Fallen for Ukraine and toured air defense, drone and unmanned ground-system sites.

Turning to what NATO calls Russia’s hybrid campaign against Europe, Dragone said: “Those who think that by perpetrating an act of sabotage, cyberattack, and violation of the airspace in national NATO territory, they will undermine our support [to Ukraine] and our resolve. I will respond. You are failing.”