Jens Stoltenberg twice served as Norwegian Prime Minister before becoming NATO Secretary-General. AP
The battlegroups, which usually number between 1,000-1,500 troops, will be set up in Hungary, Slovakia, Romania, and Bulgaria. Stoltenberg says they will remain in place ``as long as necessary.''
Speaking Wednesday on the eve of a summit of NATO leaders, Stoltenberg said that Russia's war on Ukraine means ``a new normal for our security and NATO has to respond to that new reality.''
Stoltenberg says the leaders are likely to agree to send more assistance to Ukraine, including ``equipment to help Ukraine protect against chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats.''
NATO's 30 allies are worried about Russian rhetoric and fear that Moscow might want to create a pretext to use chemical weapons in Ukraine.
Stoltenberg says that ``any use of chemical weapons would totally change the nature of the conflict,'' and would have ``far-reaching consequences'' for Russia. He declined to elaborate.
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