Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told CNN on Tuesday that the “global international security order” put in place following World War II is being threatened by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Milley spoke to CNN following a meeting hosted by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin alongside U.S. allies in Germany who gathered to discuss the crisis in Ukraine.
“If this is left to stand, if there is no answer to this aggression, if Russia gets away with this cost-free, then so goes the so-called international order, and if that happens, then we’re entering into an era of seriously increased instability,” Milley told the outlet.
“What’s at stake is the global international security order that was put in place in 1945,” Milley added.
“That international order has lasted 78 years, it’s prevented great power war, and underlining that entire concept is the idea that large nations will not conduct military aggression against smaller nations, and that’s exactly what’s happened here, an unprovoked military aggression by Russia against a smaller nation,” the chairman continued.
Milley also warned that “now is the time” to “stop aggression and to restore peace and security to the European continent.”