10.03.2025 20:30
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stated that he views U.S. President Donald Trump's efforts to end the war in Ukraine positively, while emphasizing that Europe needs to consider security guarantees in the post-war period.
The NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stated that U.S. President Donald Trump is trying to overcome the deadlock in Ukraine and that this is a positive development, calling on European allies to think about post-war security guarantees.
Rutte participated in a panel where he answered questions from students at the University of Sarajevo during his visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
"A GOOD STEP"
In response to a question about U.S. President Donald Trump's plan to end the war in Ukraine, Rutte said, "It is a good step that President Trump is trying to overcome the deadlock in Ukraine. However, there is still no peace agreement; all of these are still in the working phase."
Rutte, who said, "But I think President Trump is right," stated that Europe needs to think about how a "security guarantee mission" could be to maintain a ceasefire and peace agreement in Ukraine.
"I HOPE WE REACH A PEACE AGREEMENT SOON"
Rutte evaluated, "(To maintain the ceasefire and peace) There are many models to do this, and one of the models is currently being worked on by the French and the British. I think all of these are positive, and I hope we reach a peace agreement soon."
"AT LEAST 3 PERCENT"
Rutte noted that he was successful in calling on NATO allies to increase defense spending during Trump's first term, stating that the current approach has had the same effect on European allies.
Rutte expressed that he expects the new target for defense spending at the upcoming NATO summit in The Hague to be "at least 3 percent of gross domestic product (GDP)."