NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte expressed hope today that the peace talks in Ukraine will achieve a ceasefire or a peace agreement before the summer of next year. It is difficult to predict whether the US efforts will succeed, Rutte said at a press conference on the eve of tomorrow's meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels, quoted by BTA.
He noted that 20,000 Russians die in the war every month, the Ukrainian side is also suffering great casualties, and this must stop. Let's hope for a peace agreement, we are helping with everything we can, Rutte added. According to him, the expectation is that the war will end in a way that Russia will never attack Ukraine again.
Ukraine's path to NATO is irreversible, but we know that there is not the necessary unanimity in the alliance to admit the country to the organization. That is why we are discussing how Ukraine will be protected after the war is over, Rutte explained. He insisted that the issues related to the future of the pact and enshrined in the initial draft of the peace agreement from recent weeks will be resolved by the allies separately.
We welcome the efforts of the United States and I am confident that peace will eventually be restored, Rutte said. He noted that tomorrow the foreign ministers will discuss the changing security threats, including the dangers posed by Russia.