US defense secretary: 'Russia's invasion offers preview of a possible world of tyranny and turmoil'

Russia's invasion of Ukraine "offers a preview of a possible world of tyranny and turmoil that none of us want to live in," U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Nov. 19 during a speech to a security forum in Canada. 

Lloyd also said that "Putin's fellow autocrats are watching and they could well conclude that getting nuclear weapons would give them a hunting license of their own," leading to a "dangerous spiral of nuclear proliferation." 

The secretary also said that NATO poses no threat to Russia and seeks no confrontation with the country, while reiterating that the U.S. is committed to defending its NATO allies. 

"Make no mistake: We will not be dragged into Putin's war of choice, but we will stand by Ukraine as it fights to defend itself," he said. "We will defend every inch of NATO territory."