WORLD NEWS FOR MONTENEGRO DIASPORA
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AUTHOR:M.J. GDNUS
The whole of NATO, including the United States, is “fully committed” to keeping Ukraine in the fight against the Russian invasion, the alliance’s Secretary General Mark Rutte said in an interview with Reuters.
Speaking at the end of a NATO leaders’ summit in The Hague, Rutte also said that no one in the alliance is naive about Russia and that all members “have more or less the same view” of Moscow.
US President Donald Trump’s more conciliatory stance towards Russia, as part of his efforts to end the war in Ukraine, has raised questions about America’s commitment to Kiev.
“The whole of NATO, including the United States, is fully committed to keeping Ukraine in the fight, to ensuring that if there is a peace agreement, that agreement – or a possible ceasefire – is permanent, that it is sustainable,” Rutte said.
He stressed that it is clear that Europeans will take on increasing responsibility for military assistance to Ukraine in the future.
But he added that the United States would remain “strongly involved in intelligence cooperation, as well as practical military support,” including potentially air defense systems.
“I think the American presence will continue to be very significant,” Rutte said.
The Trump administration has also told Europeans that they must take primary responsibility for their own security, rather than relying on the United States through NATO.
Rutte said such a process was possible because European countries had pledged to invest more in defense, and that it would be “well-organized” to avoid weaknesses that Russia could exploit.
“I have discussed these things in Washington in recent months,” he said.
“For years, the United States has been saying, ‘We need to turn more to Asia.’ Now, with the Europeans taking on more of the burden, that becomes possible,” he added.
"You will see that the American contribution to NATO, when it comes to military capabilities, will gradually decline. But it is also very clear that the US does not want any security gaps to arise in Europe," Rutte concluded.
