NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte declared on Monday that Ukraine is currently not strong enough to negotiate peace with Russia. At the same time, he called on the European Union (EU) and NATO to increase military aid to Ukraine, TASR writes according to an AFP report.
“At this moment, it is clear that Ukraine is not doing well because it is not currently able to negotiate (peace in the country) from a position of strength. And we have to do more to change the trajectory of the conflict and ensure that position,” Rutte told EU lawmakers.
“We all want this war to end, but above all we want peace to last,” he added. At the same time, he warned against the victory of Russia and the subsequent strengthening of its allies China, North Korea and Iran. According to him, peace would not last with such a way of ending the conflict.
Rutte reiterated that Ukraine needs more military aid from the EU for its own defense, and the Union should also increase defense spending. The current obligation of NATO member countries to spend two percent of their gross domestic product on defense is “not nearly enough” to face the threat from Moscow.
According to the Ukrainian news agency RBC-Ukraine, Rutte believes that the future of global security depends on the outcome of the conflict in Ukraine.
Rutte indicated that the development of the conflict in Ukraine will also depend on the administration of the newly elected US President Donald Trump. He has repeatedly claimed that he can quickly end the conflict, but has never presented any concrete plan. Since the beginning of the Russian offensive in February 2022, Washington has provided tens of billions of dollars in aid to Ukraine.
On Friday, Trump confirmed that his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the subject of the war in Ukraine is in the preparation stage. He will assume the presidency during the inauguration on Monday, January 20.
