FULL MEDIA BRIEFING: NATO Chief Mark Rutte Talks Defence Spending, Unity, and Ukraine Support | AC1Z

Added: 2026-05-22

[00:00:08][sniffs] of media good morning all here looking [clears throat] forward at least I'm looking forward I hope you also looking forward to the meeting of foreign ministers I'm really want again to thank Sweden for organizing as you know only a couple of years in NATO and already organizing such a huge event Sweden is an important important new ally of course together with Finland when they came in Finland a bit earlier. What we will focus on today is very much on the Ankara summit the main themes for the Ankara summit. First of all making sure the money is there to deter and defend ourselves against any adversary. And the good news here is of course that the money is really coming in. many allies committing more and more accelerating the path to the 5% spending commitment in the ha and this literally means tens over the years hundreds of billions of extra defense spending secondly the money is great but then we need to spend it and to spend it of course is on the men and women uniform but also making sure that they have what they need to determine defend that is the defense industrial output there is intense debate going on is the defense industry with the financial sector to make sure that also they do what is needed to ramp up their defense production not increasing prices but producing more and good news is coming in we make progress but still lots needs to be done and ankara will also very much focus on this on this issue and thirdly and last night we had Andri Sibia here the Ukrainian foreign minister of course is how can we keep Ukraine as strong as possible in the fight eh they are holding the frontline and erm Russian attack 202 invasion 2022 but still we have to make sure that they have what they need to maintain in the fight and that is also about money and making sure that that money and the support for Ukraine is as evenly distributed about NATO allies as possible and I think we can do more here so that will also be one of the themes we will discuss having said we meet later today at the presser but if you have a few questions now I can take two or three and then see later.

[00:02:25]Yes, please.

[00:02:41]Well, of course, I welcome the announcement. Our military commanders are working through all the details, but of course welcome it. But let's be clear the trajectory we we are on which is a stronger Europe and a stronger NATO making sure we will over time step by step be less reliant on one ally only as we have been for so long which is the United States. that also for them they have the possibility and the option to pivot more towards other priorities which are also our interest will continue but of course I very welcome the announcement yesterday you have seen over the years always that there are decisions about deployments and troop levels etc But is when you zoom out you clearly see the trajectory the trajectory is that European are spending more. I've mentioned yesterday again the German example but I could mention the Dutch example the Polish example so many examples in Europe.

[00:03:47]Sweden where we are today already reaching the 5% including the 3.5 core defense spending by 2030 5 years ahead of schedule. Eh and this is necessary not only to equalize what we are spending with the United States but also to make sure that we have what we need to determine against our adversaries including our long-term threat which is Russia. Eh and the US will play a key role in Europe when it comes to the nuclear but also when it comes to the conventional. But what you will be seeing over the coming time is a step bystep process where the Europeans step up more which is really important.

[00:04:25]Americans acknowledge this and within that process you will always have of course decisions and announcements which ehm are part of the longer term trajectory.

[00:04:47]Hey, listen. NATO is a political military alliance. So that's the big difference with China or Russia where one person in the end takes all the decisions. We are a democratic alliance and a military alliance. And that means that decisions will always be informed by military and political considerations. That's how it works. [sniffs] Basically, it is happening already. But I'm seeing for example the United States the flow of US crucial gear into Ukraine continues. Eh this includes of course eh vital eh eh anti ballistic missile anti missile eh support including for the Patriot systems eh paid for by European all the famous Pearl program. It is continuing. The Europeans are paying for it. What I want to achieve is that the burden is more evenly spread. Eh that there is more eh burn sharing here because at the moment it is only six or seven allies who are doing the heavy lifting. The good news is that what they do is enough to make sure that Ukraine eh keeps having the access to this crucial US eh equipment. But of course it would be fair if within eh NATO and particularly the European part of NATO we could see other allies also stepping up. But when it comes to the support for Ukraine and political support for Ukraine particularly, there is absolutely no discussion. We all see the necessity and we see the Ukrainians doing yes remarkably well on the battlefield. Final question.

[00:06:40]No doubt when for ministers meet we will discuss all relevant eh events, all relevant developments including of course the straight of Iran. Ehm when I was in the United States early April also spoke with the president and the secretive state and the secretive war I I really sense this disappointment eh let me also say that Europeans have heard the message when it comes for example to European basis and these are bilateral commitments by European countries with United States so that United States can use these bilateral commitments operations they Europe over massively European countries have been living up to those commitments. I was in Bucharest last week and I saw first hand and you know that the Romanian government had to change even the legislation to make this possible and it did I think in one or two days I saw the tankers on the airport of Buchaest but the same is true for Bulgaria, Portugal eh it's true for Greece eh but also the bigger countries like Italy and UK and France eh and Germany eh so they are all when it comes to making their basis available doing what US could expect.

[00:07:59]based on bilateral commitments. when it comes to the st of next what we are seeing is and also here I think Europeans really heard the message is many European countries making sure that they let's say preposition some of [sniffs] their key and eh key eh ships and other equipment eh close to theater for example demining eh eh equipment demining ships, demining eh uncoted systems so that in that next phase eh we can be maximum helpful as European allies with the United States to see how we can make sure that the freedom of navigation and this is what I put here the straight of Moves is at this moment choked off and the free movement of navigation is seriously on the threat here so of course this is an interest also for all allies not for NATO maybe as an alliance but clearly wherever we can help we will be there thank you so much and see you later.