NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte's inaugural speech came just over two months after he took office as NATO's top civilian official. He has since toured the capitals of the 32 allies, including a visit to NATO's most important member, the United States to meet with President-elect Donald Trump.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte warned on Thursday that Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to 바카라wipe Ukraine off the map바카라 and could come after other parts of Europe next, as he urged Europeans to press their governments to ramp up defense spending.
바카라It is time to shift to a wartime mindset,바카라 Rutte told security experts and analysts at the Carnegie Europe think-tank in Brussels. He said people should gird themselves for the prospect that Russia might try to use 바카라swarms of drones바카라 in Europe as it has to deadly effect in Ukraine.
Putin 바카라is trying to crush our freedom and way of life," Rutte said. The former Dutch prime minister listed Russia's attacks on Georgia in 2008, the annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014, and the all-out invasion launched almost three years ago.
바카라How many more wake-up calls do we need? We should be profoundly concerned. I know I am,바카라 he said. 바카라Russia is preparing for long-term confrontation. With Ukraine, and with us."
Rutte's inaugural speech came just over two months after he took office as NATO's top civilian official. He has since toured the capitals of the 32 allies, including a visit to NATO's most important member, the United States to meet with President-elect Donald Trump.
NATO has been a staunch backer of Ukraine and has helped most of its members funnel weapons, ammunition and other support into the country. But Trump's return, and pledge to end the war quickly, has fuelled concern that an unfavourable truce might be forced on Ukraine.
Asked by the Associated Press how damaging a quick and shoddy peace agreement might be, Rutte said that 바카라a bad deal means Putin coming out on top, and that will have worldwide ramifications, not only on Europe and Ukraine바카라. He insisted that Ukraine must be involved in any peace talks.
Trump routinely complains that US allies in NATO are not spending enough on defence. Rutte said Russia's military spending is likely to amount to 7 to 8% of its GDP next year -- far more than any NATO ally -- while its defense industry churns out tanks, armoured vehicles and ammunition.
Putin also has the support of allies like China, Iran and North Korea.
Rutte noted that defense spending has risen sharply in Europe, with 23 allies expected to reach NATO's target of putting 2% of GDP into their military budgets. But he added: 바카라I can tell you, we are going to need a lot more than 2%.바카라
Rutte listed a series of recent 바카라hostile actions바카라 by Russia against NATO allies, including cyber-attacks, assassinations, an explosion at a Czech ammunition depot, the jamming of radars in the Baltic region to disrupt air traffic, and the 바카라weaponisation바카라 of migrants to destabilise Europe.
바카라These attacks are not just isolated incidents. They are the result of a coordinated campaign to destabilise our societies and discourage us from supporting Ukraine,바카라 he said. 바카라They circumvent our deterrence and bring the front line to our front doors.바카라
Beyond increased defence spending in Europe, Rutte noted that NATO now has tens of thousands of troops on high readiness should they be needed to defend allied territory.
바카라With all this, our deterrence is good -- for now. But it's tomorrow I'm worried about,바카라 he said, and warned that 바카라we are not ready for what is coming our way in four to five years. Danger is moving towards us at full speed.바카라
바카라What is happening in Ukraine could happen here too, and regardless of the outcome of this war, we will not be safe in the future unless we are prepared to deal with danger,바카라 Rutte added.
Rutte appealed to governments to provide the defence industry with 바카라the big orders and long-term contracts they need to rapidly produce more and better capabilities바카라. He urged the industry to boost production for defences against drones and other new war tactics.
He added that 바카라freedom does not come for free바카라 to the estimated 1 billion people living in the Euro-Atlantic area.
바카라If we don't spend more together now to prevent war, we will pay a much, much, much higher price later to fight it. Not billions, but trillions of euros. That's if we come out on top, and that's if we win,바카라 he said.