WASHINGTON (Dispatches) — The United States and other NATO members said on Wednesday they would keep helping Ukraine fight off Russia, while also adapting the alliance’s own security to the “new reality” triggered by the war.

Diplomats and military analysts estimate that NATO allies have sent more than 20,000 anti-tank and other weapons to Ukraine since the invasion started on Feb. 24.

NATO countries will continue to deliver weapons to Ukraine even as those deliveries could become the target of Russian attacks, Dutch defense minister Kajsa Ollongren told reporters, adding: “Ukraine has the right to defend itself.”

Ukraine is not a member of NATO. Although it has repeatedly said it wants to join to benefit from its protection, Kiev said on Tuesday it understood it does not have an open door to NATO membership and was seeking other types of security guarantees.

President Joe Biden said Wednesday the U.S. is sending more anti-aircraft, anti-armor weapons and drones to Ukraine.

The president’s comments came as he formally announced his administration was sending an additional $800 million in military assistance to Ukraine, making a total of $2 billion in such aid sent to Kiev since Biden took office more than a year ago. About $1 billion in aid has been sent in just the last week.

Biden spoke hours after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky delivered a video address to members of U.S. Congress in which he made an impassioned plea for the U.S. and West to provide more help than world leaders have so far pledged to provide.

 NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said the alliance was not planning to send forces to Ukraine, after Poland called for it to deploy a peacekeeping mission.

“We call on Russia, on President (Vladimir) Putin to withdraw its forces, but we have no plans of deploying NATO troops on the ground in Ukraine,” Stoltenberg said after a meeting of NATO defense ministers.

Nevertheless, the alliance is looking to deploy “substantially more forces” to its eastern flank, he added.  

“On land, our new posture should include substantially more forces in the eastern part of the alliance, at higher readiness, with more pre-positioned equipment and supplies,” Stoltenberg said. 

An extraordinary NATO summit which will also be attended in person by President Biden is scheduled for March 24. The summit will seek to coordinate its response to Russia’s war in Ukraine, Stoltenberg has said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin promised financial help to ordinary Russians and the country’s businesses Wednesday, calling on the nation to come together to overcome the West’s “economic blitzkrieg”.

Putin made an impassioned defense of his military actions in Ukraine, saying his tactics were “completely justified” and that he had no other choice but to send troops into the country.
Speaking at a televised government meeting, the Kremlin chief called on Russians to “mobilize” in order to overcome difficulties related to the massive sanctions imposed on the country.
“Yes, it is not easy for us now,” Putin acknowledged. “But this economic blitzkrieg against Russia has failed.”
He announced an “increase of all social payments in the near future” and said the Russian economy had “all the necessary resources to solve long-term tasks”.
“The current situation is, of course, a test,” the longtime leader said. “I am sure that we will pass it with dignity and hard work. We will overcome these difficulties,” he said.
He also sought to reassure Russian private companies, saying they played a “key role in overcoming the current issues”.
Putin promised “maximum entrepreneurial freedom”, ordering his government to “remove administrative barriers” in an economy largely dominated by the state.
The Russian leader said Western sanctions had “one aim: the destruction of Russia”.
He compared the avalanche of Western sanctions to anti-Semitic violence by fascists. “The West dropped its mask of civility and began to act belligerently. It begs a comparison to the anti-Semitic pogroms” of Nazis, he said.
Putin said that the West sought to divide Russian society, railing against a “fifth column” that was “mentally” in the West.
“Russian people will always be able to distinguish true patriots from traitors and just spit them out like a fly that accidentally flew into their mouth,” he said.
He said that the Russian army’s operation in Ukraine was unfolding “successfully”.
“We will not allow Ukraine to serve as a springboard for aggressive actions against Russia,” he said.
He said Western leaders gave him “no option to resolve the process in a peaceful way”.
Putin sent troops into Ukraine on February 24 despite Western leaders warning him of massive sanctions that would cripple the Russian economy for months.