NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte emphasized that the support provided by partners to Ukraine is proving effective. He made this assessment during a press conference in London following the “Coalition of the Willing” meeting.
This is reported by Kyiv24
The High Cost of Russia’s Aggression and the Role of International Aid
According to Rutte, the Kremlin regime is achieving only minor territorial gains in the war against Ukraine, while the cost of such successes for Russia is extraordinarily high. He highlighted that the Russian Federation is suffering enormous losses on the battlefield, with hundreds of thousands of Russians dying due to the aggressive policies of the government.
“Hundreds of thousands of Russians are dying because of Putin’s insane aggression. Ukraine continues to act bravely, and our support for them is working. The truth is that Putin is running out of money, ideas, and soldiers. President Trump said it well – they need to stop where they are now, and now is the time to increase pressure on Russia to achieve a fair and honest peace for Ukraine,” he said.
The NATO Secretary General also noted the recent statements from European allies and Canada regarding additional military assistance to Ukraine. He stressed that events on the front convincingly demonstrate the effectiveness of support, and therefore it should be maintained at a high level and economic and sanctions pressure on Russia should be expanded.
Focus on Sanctions and Strengthening Ukraine’s Defense Capabilities
Mark Rutte positively assessed the adoption of the 19th sanctions package against Russia, calling it another step in the right direction. He also mentioned that while there was a risk of halting arms supplies from the United States, President Trump decided in July to restore the PURL procurement program, which involves supplying missiles for Patriot systems and other weapons that are not available in European stockpiles.
According to Rutte, active work is currently underway to ensure a monthly flow of assistance to Ukraine amounting to about 1 billion dollars or more. He specifically mentioned discussions with the U.S. President regarding the supply of Tomahawk missiles, a decision on which is currently under consideration in Washington.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen described the coalition meeting as focused and productive. She emphasized that sanctions pressure remains a key tool for forcing the Kremlin to negotiate, and also reported on discussions regarding urgent energy assistance to Ukraine ahead of the winter period and strengthening its air defense. According to her, Europe is increasing cooperation in the defense sector and advancing work on a reparations loan for Ukraine, options for which are to be presented soon.
The “Coalition of the Willing” meeting took place against the backdrop of EU leaders’ failure to reach a consensus on using frozen Russian assets to fund Ukrainian needs. The majority of these funds are held in Belgium, which has expressed legal and technical reservations. Meanwhile, EU leaders, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, committed to ensuring funding for Ukraine over the next two years, as stated by European Council President Antonio Costa after the summit.