Russia providing North Korea with missile technology in exchange for soldiers, ammunition - Rutte
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said this at NATO headquarters in Brussels on Wednesday following a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, according to an Ukrinform correspondent.
"Maybe most importantly also, thanks to American leadership, Ukraine has prevailed and Russia has not won. And obviously we have to do more to make sure that Ukraine can stay in the fight and is able to roll back as much as possible the Russian onslaught and to prevent Putin from being successful in Ukraine," Rutte said.
He stressed that the presence of North Korean troops presents an extra threat to Ukraine and will increase the potential for Putin to do harm.
"At the same time, he [Putin] has to pay for this, and he is paying for this by technology, for example, missile technology going to North Korea," Rutte said, adding that this presents a threat not only to the European side of NATO, but also to the U.S. mainland, South Korea and Japan.
According to Rutte, it's not just North Korea being active.
"We know for some time that China, through sanction circumvention, through dual-use goods being delivered into Russia, is helping the war effort. And of course, Iran is doing this through drone technology and other deliveries into Russia. And here, Russia is paying in money, and this helps Iran to continue its efforts to destabilize the Middle East and even beyond the Middle East," he said.
"The Euro-Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific are not two separate theatres. This is all getting more and more combined. And what is happening in Ukraine has an impact now globally. And that means that we have to stay the course, that we have to ramp up defense production on the U.S. side here in Europe. That we have to do more in terms of spending, and that we have to do more to make sure that Ukraine can prevail," Rutte added.
He thanked Blinken for his leadership over the past four years in strengthening NATO and transatlantic ties.
