Rutte praised US leadership at Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting and called for continued support for Ukraine

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte participates in a meeting of the Defence Ministerial Contact Group on Ukraine hosted by US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, today (9 January 2025). Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is also present at the Ramstein meeting.

"I applaud Lloyd Austin and what he has done for our meeting," said the Secretary-General on arrival. "We must do everything we can to ensure that Ukraine has everything it needs in terms of training and equipment to win this fight, which began in February 2022 with Russia's massive and unprovoked attack on Ukraine," he stressed, adding that 'the spirit of burden sharing will be very much at the heart of today's talks'.

Rutte also stressed that the ongoing war in Ukraine has direct consequences for global security. "The whole world is watching us; so we need to make sure that Ukraine is in the best possible position when, at Ukraine's initiative, talks begin on how to resolve this conflict," He said.

NATO/ gnews - RoZ