Russian war against Ukraine poses direct threats to West – Rutte

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stated this in Brussels on Tuesday, ahead of a meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council in defense format, according to an Ukrinform correspondent.

"Today marks 1,000 days after the full Russian onslaught, unprovoked, full Russian onslaught on Ukraine. So today we will discuss how we can help Ukraine to prevail. That means more aid, more money, and we have to make available to them. Particularly now that the North Koreans have come on board. And we know that China is helping Russia with the war effort," he said.

Rutte recalled that the Russian leader pays for this.

"For example, with missile technology going into North Korea, which then is a direct threat, poses a direct threat, not only to us, but also to South Korea, to Japan, and even to the U.S. mainland. So we have to make sure that Putin will not get his way, that Ukraine will prevail in this fight. And today that will be on our agenda," Rutte said.

At the same time, according to him, China is helping Russia circumvent sanctions by delivering dual use goods. Iran, using the money received from the Kremlin, finances its proxies in the Middle East, destabilizing this region and beyond. All such actions, according to Rutte, have a global impact. This means that the security of the Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific areas is getting more connected.

"We have seen last weekend this massive airstrike against Ukraine, hitting the power grid. It's not just Russia. It's North Korea being involved. It's China being involved. It's Iran being involved. And the fact that they're all working together, we have to realize that it means that we have to strategize what it means. And clearly this is something what the Defense Ministers will no doubt discuss today," Rutte said.

He recalled that Russia’s war against Ukraine began in 2014, when Russia occupied the Ukrainian Crimea, and escalated in February 2022, when the Kremlin launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

"I cannot be more proud of what Ukraine has done to prevail, being four times smaller, having an economy which is only 25% of the size of the Russian economy. Having been able to prevail up to this moment, because we in the West and others around the globe were willing to provide what was necessary to Ukraine to prevail and to prevent Putin to win," he said.

Photo: PAP/EPA/OLIVIER MATTHYS