NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin is interested in the destruction of Ukraine and a prolonged confrontation with Europe. This was reported by The Washington Post, according to UNN.
Details
It is noted that Mark Rutte called on Europeans to put pressure on their governments to increase defense spending.
Time to move to wartime thinking
According to him, people should prepare for the prospect that Russia may try to use “swarms of drones” in Europe, as it had a deadly effect in Ukraine.
Putin is “trying to suppress our freedom and way of life,” Rutte added. The former Dutch prime minister listed Russia's attacks on Georgia in 2008, the annexation of Ukraine's Crimean peninsula in 2014, and the full-scale invasion launched almost three years ago.
How many more warning signs do we need? We should be deeply concerned. I know I am. Russia is preparing for a long-term confrontation. With Ukraine and with us.
The NATO chief noted that defense spending in Europe has risen sharply, and 23 allies are expected to reach NATO's goal of allocating 2% of GDP to their military budgets. But he added: “I can tell you that we will need much more than 2%.
Rutte listed a number of recent “hostile actions” by Russia against NATO allies, including cyberattacks, assassinations, an explosion at a Czech munitions depot, jamming radar in the Baltic region to disrupt air traffic, and “using migrants as weapons” to destabilize Europe.
Rutte called on governments to give the defense industry “the large orders and long-term contracts it needs to produce more and better capabilities quickly.” He urged the industry to increase production of drone defense and other new military tactics.
Recall
Mark Rutte explainedthat if Russia wins, it will become stronger both territorially and militarily, which will pose a direct threat to the West. He emphasized the importance of Ukraine's victory, especially given North Korea's interference.