NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stated today in Brussels that the Western Balkans is not explicitly on the agenda of the meeting of the heads of diplomacy of the alliance's member states, but that it could be a topic because the allies are very focused on that region.
"I was recently in Sarajevo and Pristina (March 10 and 11), I spoke with the President of Serbia (Aleksandar Vučić) in Brussels (March 19). NATO is very committed to ensuring that the Western Balkans remains stable and secure," Rute told reporters upon arriving for a two-day meeting at the headquarters of the Western military alliance.
Rutte said that the ministers will discuss many things today and tomorrow, but that the focus will be on increasing the defense spending of European NATO members.
"Great things have been happening in the last few months, many European allies have announced that they are increasing defense spending. This is the largest increase among European members since the end of the Cold War in 1989. This is extremely positive and necessary because we have to defend ourselves against the long-term threat that Russia poses," said Rute.
An important topic of the meeting will be what NATO should do to provide what is necessary for Ukraine to continue fighting the Russian invasion, including military assistance, added Rutte, who will next address reporters tomorrow, at the end of the ministerial meeting.
Asked about the potential reduction in the number of US troops and military equipment in Europe, in order to redirect it to other areas, Rutte said that this was nothing new and that the US had been saying for 15 years that it wanted to turn towards Asia.
"For many years, we have been told that Europeans need to spend more money on defense. There is a clear US commitment to the alliance, but also a clear expectation that European allies will increase their spending, given how much the US is giving," Rutte said.
Rutte again welcomed the engagement of the administration of US President Donald Trump in achieving peace in Ukraine through negotiations with the Ukrainian and Russian sides.
"We fully support that dialogue, the Americans were absolutely clear that the agreement, whether on peace or a ceasefire in Ukraine, must be lasting and sustainable and ensure that Russian leader Vladimir Putin never again tries to occupy even a square kilometer of Ukraine," the NATO Secretary General added.
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