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Ukraine's capture of a city within the territory of Russian President Vladimir Putin's announced annexation shows that Ukrainians are making progress and are able to repel Russian forces, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in an interview with NBC.

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"We saw that they were able to capture a new city, Liman, and this shows that the Ukrainians are making progress, that they are able to repel the Russian forces thanks to their courage, their bravery, their skills, but of course also the modern weapons that provided by the US and other allies," Stoltenberg said on NBC's "Meet the Press."

The best way to counter Russia's announced annexation of parts of Ukraine is to continue supporting the government in Kyiv, the NATO Secretary General added.

British Intelligence: The liberation of Lyman has great strategic, political and tactical significance

Asked about Ukraine's request for accelerated membership in the Western defense alliance, Stoltenberg said that "any decision on membership must be taken by consensus, all 30 allies must agree to take such a decision," Reuters reported.

NATO supports the investigation into the apparent sabotage of Russia's Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines, which run from Russia to Europe along the bottom of the Baltic Sea, the head of NATO said.

At the same time, he issued a warning: "Any deliberate attack on critical NATO infrastructure will be met with a firm and unified response." 

Russian invasion of Ukraine

Jens Stoltenberg