Get ready for conflict – NATO leader
The bloc's secretary-general, Mark Rutte, has urged all member states to “prepare” for war and enhance their defense spending. Read Full Article at RT.com
TroibNews 
Mark Rutte has urged NATO members to enhance defense spending as their “future security is at stake.”
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte called for a "wartime mindset" during a meeting of the Military Committee in Chiefs of Defense in Brussels on Wednesday. He highlighted perceived threats from Russia and other nations as a catalyst for this need.
Rutte emphasized that the bloc’s “future security is at stake,” and accused Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran of working to “weaken our democracies and chip away at our freedom.”
“To prevent war, we need to prepare for it. It is time to shift to a wartime mindset,” Rutte stated, encouraging NATO members to invest in “more and better defense capabilities.”
While noting that NATO members have stepped up defense investments and military drills, Rutte expressed that these actions are “not sufficient to deal with the dangers coming our way in the next four to five years.”
In addition, he underscored the importance of supporting Ukraine to “change the trajectory of the war,” acknowledging the challenges faced by Kiev on the conflict front line.
Moscow has consistently rejected claims that it poses a threat to NATO countries, instead accusing the US-led bloc of conducting a proxy war against Russia and infringing upon its territory.
Recently, President Vladimir Putin stated that nearly all NATO countries are effectively at war with Russia. Likewise, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov remarked that history seems to be repeating itself, drawing “obvious parallels” between the current situation with NATO and the past invasions of Russia by Napoleon Bonaparte and Adolf Hitler after conquering numerous European nations.
On Tuesday, Rutte also revealed that NATO would enhance its presence in the Baltic Sea, an essential region for Russian naval activities and energy exports, by initiating a new mission aimed at safeguarding undersea infrastructure.
He detailed that this mission will include frigates, maritime patrol aircraft, and a “small fleet of naval drones,” which are expected to contribute to “enhanced surveillance and deterrence.”
This announcement comes in the wake of an incident involving the Cook Islands-registered oil tanker, the Eagle S, which reportedly damaged the Estlink 2 power cable linking Finland and Estonia last month. The EU has indicated that it may impose sanctions on Moscow for what EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas termed the “deliberate destruction of Europe’s critical infrastructure” using a “shadow fleet” of tankers, which allegedly includes the Eagle S.
While Finnish authorities have detained the tanker, no definitive proof has emerged regarding its involvement in the alleged sabotage.
Moscow has yet to comment on the incident.
Navid Kalantari for TROIB News
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte called for a "wartime mindset" during a meeting of the Military Committee in Chiefs of Defense in Brussels on Wednesday. He highlighted perceived threats from Russia and other nations as a catalyst for this need.
Rutte emphasized that the bloc’s “future security is at stake,” and accused Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran of working to “weaken our democracies and chip away at our freedom.”
“To prevent war, we need to prepare for it. It is time to shift to a wartime mindset,” Rutte stated, encouraging NATO members to invest in “more and better defense capabilities.”
While noting that NATO members have stepped up defense investments and military drills, Rutte expressed that these actions are “not sufficient to deal with the dangers coming our way in the next four to five years.”
In addition, he underscored the importance of supporting Ukraine to “change the trajectory of the war,” acknowledging the challenges faced by Kiev on the conflict front line.
Moscow has consistently rejected claims that it poses a threat to NATO countries, instead accusing the US-led bloc of conducting a proxy war against Russia and infringing upon its territory.
Recently, President Vladimir Putin stated that nearly all NATO countries are effectively at war with Russia. Likewise, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov remarked that history seems to be repeating itself, drawing “obvious parallels” between the current situation with NATO and the past invasions of Russia by Napoleon Bonaparte and Adolf Hitler after conquering numerous European nations.
On Tuesday, Rutte also revealed that NATO would enhance its presence in the Baltic Sea, an essential region for Russian naval activities and energy exports, by initiating a new mission aimed at safeguarding undersea infrastructure.
He detailed that this mission will include frigates, maritime patrol aircraft, and a “small fleet of naval drones,” which are expected to contribute to “enhanced surveillance and deterrence.”
This announcement comes in the wake of an incident involving the Cook Islands-registered oil tanker, the Eagle S, which reportedly damaged the Estlink 2 power cable linking Finland and Estonia last month. The EU has indicated that it may impose sanctions on Moscow for what EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas termed the “deliberate destruction of Europe’s critical infrastructure” using a “shadow fleet” of tankers, which allegedly includes the Eagle S.
While Finnish authorities have detained the tanker, no definitive proof has emerged regarding its involvement in the alleged sabotage.
Moscow has yet to comment on the incident.
Navid Kalantari for TROIB News
