Russia continues to be defined as the most serious threat to security in the Euro-Atlantic area, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said at a press conference before the meeting of the alliance's foreign ministers in Sweden, BTA reports.
He noted that after 2022, there has been a deepening of ties between Russia and China, Iran and North Korea, and according to him, Beijing is helping to circumvent sanctions against Moscow and supply dual-use goods.
Rutte stressed that the United States remains committed to NATO, but it is necessary for allies to take on a greater share of the burden of common defense. He described the expected redeployment of US military forces in Europe as a gradual and orderly process, not an abrupt withdrawal.
According to him, European countries have sufficient resources to strengthen their own defense capabilities, adding that the idea of a fairer distribution of responsibilities is in the interest of the entire alliance.
Commenting on the war in Ukraine, Rutte said that the European Union must determine its own participation in possible peace talks, and that threats of nuclear escalation by Russia will not remain without consequences. He described Moscow's allegations of the participation of the Baltic states in Ukrainian operations against Russian territory as unfounded.