NATO country may invoke Article 5 due to Russia's hybrid operations and cyberattacks

The Voice of America reported the information.

According to the outlet, the official answered the question of what NATO's response to Russia's hybrid operations and attempts to destabilize Europe could be. He said it all depends on what actions Russia continues to take.

The Alliance official stated that it was very clear to them that in the cyber domain, actions could go beyond Article 5, as well as hybrid sabotage operations.

He added that, ultimately, a country that suffers from such attacks may ask for protection from NATO allies. According to him, none of them has done so yet.

Background. Article 5 provides that if a NATO member is subjected to an armed attack, all other Allies shall treat the attack as an attack against them all and shall take such measures as they deem necessary to assist the attacked member. 

NATO summit: details

The 75th summit of the North Atlantic Alliance is scheduled to take place on July 9-11 in Washington, DC.

On April 27, former NATO Deputy Secretary General Rose Gottemoeller said that the July NATO summit in Washington would consider Ukraine's accession to the Alliance. At the same time, Gottemoeller explained that some members of the Alliance currently believe that Ukraine should not join NATO while the war is ongoing. 

On June 23, Radio Liberty's British correspondent reported that the UK is initiating a series of talks with the US and Germany ahead of the NATO summit in Washington to persuade them to invite Ukraine to join the Alliance. The correspondent emphasized that the UK continues to use its foreign policy influence to help Ukraine.

The New York Times reported that NATO will announce a mission to help Ukraine at a summit in the United States. The NYT noted that Ukraine will not start membership talks at the upcoming NATO summit, but the Alliance will announce a structure to coordinate assistance in the long term.

On July 5, US Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink said that during the upcoming NATO summit in Washington, the allies would raise the issue of strengthening Ukraine's air defense and integrating the country into the Alliance.

The draft joint communiqué of the North Atlantic Alliance calls Ukraine's path to NATO membership "irreversible."

On Tuesday, July 9, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived at the NATO Summit in Washington, DC.

The United States, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, and Romania announced the supply of 4 Patriot air defense systems, SAMP-T systems, and announced the provision of other shorter-range air defense systems to Ukraine.