NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has warned of a “war” with Russia in the medium term and called on allies to significantly increase defense spending.
“We are not ready for what awaits us in four to five years,” Rutte said with extreme concern on Thursday in his first keynote speech since taking office in October. “What happens in Ukraine could also happen here,” he warned.
There is no “immediate military threat” from Russia, the former Dutch head of government said in his speech at the Carnegie Foundation for International Peace in Brussels. But Russia is preparing for a ‘long-term confrontation’. “With Ukraine. And with us,” Rutte emphasized to guests of the American think tank.
The NATO countries cannot keep up with Moscow
Despite increasing their defense budgets, NATO countries still cannot keep up with Moscow’s weapons production, Rutte said. He called on allies to adopt a “war mentality” and put military spending into “turbo” gear. “We can prevent the next major war on NATO territory,” he continued.
Future US President Donald Trump has announced that he will put pressure on allies to increase defense spending. This year, only 23 of the 32 NATO countries meet the requirement to spend at least two percent of their gross domestic product on defense. Germany narrowly meets the target for the first time. NATO countries such as Italy, Spain and Canada, on the other hand, are among the laggards.
Source: Krone
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