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NATO Secretary General Unveils 'NATO 3.0' Vision
(MENAFN) NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte laid out an ambitious blueprint Wednesday for a recalibrated transatlantic alliance — one in which a more self-reliant Europe operates within a strengthened NATO framework, while Washington retains its nuclear and conventional role as the alliance's ultimate guarantor.
Rutte delivered the remarks following a meeting of the Bucharest Nine (B9), a grouping of NATO's eastern flank members, and placed Russia squarely at the center of the alliance's threat calculus.
"We cannot let down our guard. We will always do what is necessary to defend every inch of NATO territory," he said, pointing to reinforced deterrence measures along NATO's eastern flank and across the High North.
Under the "NATO 3.0" framework, Rutte envisions European members shouldering a substantially larger share of conventional defense responsibilities, while the US continues to underwrite the alliance's nuclear umbrella and broader military heft. The model, he said, amounts to "a stronger Europe in a stronger NATO."
With this year's NATO summit in Ankara approaching, Rutte called on allies to accelerate military capability-building, ramp up defense production, and push spending higher — crediting US President Donald Trump for forcing the issue. He described last year's Hague summit as "one of the biggest foreign policy successes" of the American president, and noted that several alliance members are now on track to surpass the 5% spending target ahead of the 2035 benchmark.
On friction between Washington and some European capitals over the US and Israeli strikes on Iran, Rutte acknowledged "disappointment in the United States" over certain allies' responses, but said the message had landed.
"We are really working together on this," he said, citing joint efforts to secure the Strait of Hormuz, including active demining operations and the forward positioning of military assets in the region.
Turning to Ukraine, Rutte made clear that military support must continue flowing to Kyiv while the international community waits for Moscow to signal a genuine willingness to negotiate.
"I must say the ball is clearly in (Russian President Vladimir) Putin's court. He has to play ball. He is not doing that yet... He has to be willing to play ball to engage, really, in peace negotiations," Rutte said.
Rutte delivered the remarks following a meeting of the Bucharest Nine (B9), a grouping of NATO's eastern flank members, and placed Russia squarely at the center of the alliance's threat calculus.
"We cannot let down our guard. We will always do what is necessary to defend every inch of NATO territory," he said, pointing to reinforced deterrence measures along NATO's eastern flank and across the High North.
Under the "NATO 3.0" framework, Rutte envisions European members shouldering a substantially larger share of conventional defense responsibilities, while the US continues to underwrite the alliance's nuclear umbrella and broader military heft. The model, he said, amounts to "a stronger Europe in a stronger NATO."
With this year's NATO summit in Ankara approaching, Rutte called on allies to accelerate military capability-building, ramp up defense production, and push spending higher — crediting US President Donald Trump for forcing the issue. He described last year's Hague summit as "one of the biggest foreign policy successes" of the American president, and noted that several alliance members are now on track to surpass the 5% spending target ahead of the 2035 benchmark.
On friction between Washington and some European capitals over the US and Israeli strikes on Iran, Rutte acknowledged "disappointment in the United States" over certain allies' responses, but said the message had landed.
"We are really working together on this," he said, citing joint efforts to secure the Strait of Hormuz, including active demining operations and the forward positioning of military assets in the region.
Turning to Ukraine, Rutte made clear that military support must continue flowing to Kyiv while the international community waits for Moscow to signal a genuine willingness to negotiate.
"I must say the ball is clearly in (Russian President Vladimir) Putin's court. He has to play ball. He is not doing that yet... He has to be willing to play ball to engage, really, in peace negotiations," Rutte said.
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