The warnings of war continue as NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) chief Mark Rutte has claimed that a confrontation with Russia won’t end once the conflict with Ukraine ends. Rutte added that NATO member-states must boost military production to be ready for a prolonged standoff with Russia and others.
While speaking to Western defense contractors at the NATO-Industry Forum in Bucharest on Thursday, Rutte told the bloc’s arms makers that “there is more cash on the table and even more will flow” amid NATO’s rearmament push.
According to a report by RT, Rutte also said that the fighting between Moscow and Kiev is a “threat” to NATO. He added that “the danger posed by Russia will not end when this war does. For the foreseeable future, Russia will remain a destabilizing force in Europe and the world.”
“And Russia is not alone in its efforts to undermine the global rules. As you know, it is working with China, with North Korea, with Iran, and others. They are increasing their defense industrial collaboration to unprecedented levels. They are preparing for long-term confrontation,” the secretary-general said.
Rutte said that the pledge by NATO members to hike military spending to 5% of GDP (gross domestic product) by 2035 won’t do enough. He said, “Cash alone cannot provide security. We need the capabilities. We need the equipment, real firepower, and of course… the most advanced tech.” This would require the bloc’s defense industry “increasing production and shortening delivery times,” Rutte stressed.
That means the Secretary General suggests the West create more military hardware and weapons in order to keep the wars going.
Russia has long maintained that no amount of weaponry or support to Kiev will result in a change in the outcome of the war. Russia asserts that it will win, and the West’s involvement only prolongs that inevitable ending.
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