Thread by @jseldin

.@NATO allies surprised by #Ukraine's resistance vs #Russia

"Allies have certainly been impressed by the performance of the Ukrainian forces" @USAmbNATO Julianne Smith tells @GWUPMNS

"I think many of us were surprised by their ability to push back on Russian aggression"

"The level of of ... respect that you see across the alliance for Ukrainian forces right now is quite high" per @USAmbNATO

#Ukraine progress on the ground "not linear in all cases" per @USAmbNATO "We see moments where #Russia|n forces advance. We see moments where Ukrainian forces are successfully able to push back"

"Similarly, I think there has been some surprise across the alliance in watching the Russian performance" per @USAmbNATO

"#Russia is a country that is clearly having some major challenges" in #Ukraine... Russia's had to reassess, put its focus almost exclusively in the east"

"Collectively at @NATO I think we do hope & believe that #Ukraine will ultimately prevail" per @USAmbNATO

"The allies remain united in their determination to continue providing security assistance to Ukraine. I don't see anyone moving away from that mission"

.@NATO as an alliance has provided non-lethal support to #Ukraine but alliance leaving it up to individual countries to provide security assistance, weapons systems - "I don't see that changing" per @USAmbNATO

.@NATO-#Russia Founding Act - "Russia is in violation" per @USAmbNATO

"NATO allies collectively do not believe that the NATO Russia founding act now constrains decisions that we're taking as it relates to force posture in central & Eastern #Europe"

Despite US agreement to send new weapons systems, MLRS to #Ukraine the parameters of US aid "have remained relatively clear" per @USAmbNATO

As for systems being given to #Kyiv, "that's all evolved & changed over the last couple of months, I think, quite naturally"

Washington's ongoing message to #Ukraine - "We are not in a position to support you [Ukraine] w/equipment that can attack #Russia|n territory" per @USAmbNATO

Also, "NATO allies are united that NATO will not become a party to this conflict"

Endgame in #Ukraine - "From the US perspective our position is that Ukraine needs to make those determinations" per @USAmbNATO

"We do not feel like we're in a position where we can dictate the terms of any negotiation or any final outcome"

#Russia|n blockade of #Odesa-grain/food shortages - "It's a concern for all @NATO allies" per @USAmbNATO

BUT "I don't foresee any NATO role as of today" she says "We're having bilateral & other multilateral conversations thru the US-EU & thru the UN that's focused on that"

#Turkey's outreach to #Russia, offer to negotiate potential sea corridor for grains from #Ukraine - "We're skeptical that at this juncture it's it's going to lead to some sort of major breakthrough" per @USAmbNATO