Ukraine war: New NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte visits Kiev

The new NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte visits Ukraine just two days after taking office. The country must continue to be supported in its fight against Russia because “their security is important for our security,” he said at a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kiev. Together they discussed the areas in which Ukraine needs further support and the way in which NATO is working to provide this.

Rutte said it was important that he visited Kiev at the start of his mandate “to make it clear to all observers” that NATO stands with Ukraine. Rutte also emphasized that the country is closer to the alliance than ever before. Ukraine will continue on this path until it becomes a member of NATO. Details of the visit were not released for security reasons, a NATO official said.

Zelensky emphasized in a post on X that Ukraine’s most important goal is to become a full member of the alliance. In addition to strengthening Ukrainian air defense, the topic of the talks was also the approval for the use of long-range Western weapons against targets on Russian territory. “Without long-range weapons, we cannot resist Russia, which uses corresponding weapons. That is why we are so persistent,” emphasized Zelensky. This also serves above all to protect the lives of Ukrainian soldiers, which are more important than ruins, he said, referring to recent withdrawals of Ukrainian troops.

Zelensky was disappointed by the lack of progress in NATO’s launch of Russian drones and missiles over Ukrainian territory as requested by Kiev. “We are working on it. So far they are not ready for it,” said the head of state.

New NATO Secretary General

Former Dutch Prime Minister Rutte took over the post of NATO Secretary General on Tuesday from Norwegian Jens Stoltenberg, who was in office for around ten years. Rutte was chosen by the 32 NATO member states in early summer. He should hold the top post for at least four years, after which his mandate could be renewed.

Visit as an important signal

Rutte’s visit is an important signal for Kyiv. In the past, Rutte’s predecessor Stoltenberg persistently advocated for the greatest possible support for Ukraine with Western weapons systems. Ukraine can hope that Rutte will continue on this course.

Before he took office at NATO, Rutte had made it clear several times that, in his view, Ukraine should be able to use Western weapons systems against Russia without restrictions. During his term as Prime Minister of the Netherlands, it was also decided to provide Ukraine with Dutch F-16 fighter jets. Taking into account its economic strength, the Netherlands under his leadership was also one of the countries that provided the most military support to Ukraine.