– NATO – Archive
Brussels, December 2 (European Press) –
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte confirmed today, Tuesday, that any point in the agreement with Russia to end the war in Ukraine in which NATO is participating will only be determined by the allies separately, after the initial peace plan of the United States President, Donald Trump, included a veto against Ukraine’s accession to the alliance.
“When it comes to the aspects related to NATO within an agreement to end the war against Ukraine, this will be dealt with separately, and this of course will include NATO,” the political head of the alliance said at a press conference before the meeting of allied foreign ministers on Wednesday in Brussels.
Rutte expressed his appreciation for US efforts to achieve a peace deal in Ukraine, ensuring that NATO coordinated closely with the US delegation and that the proposal had evolved since it was put on the table, so any implications for NATO would be dealt with separately by the allies.
He pointed out, “You have to start from somewhere. It is necessary to have proposals on the table,” stressing that the important thing is for communications to advance after the meetings that the Ukrainian and American delegations already held in Geneva a week ago and recently in Miami.
However, the Dutch leader avoided predicting whether a short-term agreement would be reached with Moscow to stop the war. Although he appreciated that Ukraine and the entire NATO, led by Washington, were trying to “get to this point,” he acknowledged the need to draw Russia into the agreement. “You need two to tango,” he said, referring to Moscow’s hesitation. “We need Russians to tango.”
If it does not join NATO, Ukraine must receive security guarantees
Regarding NATO’s position on Ukraine’s eventual accession, the former Dutch prime minister insisted that the language of the 2024 Washington summit, before Trump returned to the White House, proved that Ukraine’s path to NATO was “irreversible.”
He stressed that “Ukraine requested membership, but we also know, and this is a statement of fact, that there is no consensus within the alliance for Ukraine to join,” noting that the future peace agreement must include some kind of security guarantees for Kiev.
If not by joining NATO, it is necessary to ensure that Ukraine “is protected by itself, but also with the help of others,” to prevent future Russian military aggression, Rutte said.