Vladimir Putin's eventual victory will force NATO members to spend "trillions" more on defense.
This was stated by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. He called for stepping up support for Ukraine to put Kiev in the strongest position to reach a sustainable peace agreement with Russia.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Mark Rutte warned against cutting support for Ukraine, saying it was essential to "change the trajectory of the war", the Guardian reported.
Rutte said a bad end to the Russia-Ukraine war would lead to Vladimir Putin "celebrating with the leaders of North Korea, Iran and China."
He added that if Ukraine lost the war, NATO members would have to spend trillions more on defense.
The alliance leader spoke after Donald Trump threatened Russia with taxes, tariffs and sanctions if an agreement to end the war in Ukraine is not reached soon.
Rutte told attendees at a breakfast hosted by the Victor Pinchuk Foundation that "there is a commitment to Ukraine becoming a member of NATO."
But Trump's new envoy for special missions, Richard Grenell, pushed back against the demand of Rutte, a former prime minister of the Netherlands, that European NATO members increase their military spending.
Grenell predicted a "big buzz in America" if the NATO secretary talks about Ukraine joining NATO when "it's the American people who are paying for defense."
"You can't ask the American people to extend the NATO umbrella when current members are not paying their fair share, and that includes the Dutch, who need to step up," Grenell said.
Rutte conceded that Grenell had a point, and agreed that Europe "doesn't spend enough on defense," as Trump has often said.
He agreed that the situation needs to change, and warned that not all members have met the target of spending 2% of GDP on defence, which he said was already too little.
"We are safe now, but NATO collectively is not in a position to defend itself in four or five years if we stick to 2%," he said. | BGNES
