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NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte called for Türkiye's defense industry to be connected "as closely as possible" with the United Kingdom, Norway, and the European Union during a summit in The Hague.
Rutte made the statements during a "Public Forum" event at the NATO Summit in The Hague, where he answered questions from citizens of allied countries as part of the first day's program.
"We must ensure that the Turkish defense industry base is connected as closely as possible with the United Kingdom, Norway, and the European Union," Rutte said.
Referring to Türkiye, Rutte stated, "Türkiye has a very large defense industry base."
Rutte emphasized the importance of not overlooking this capability, adding, "I visited some of their companies; they're really impressive."
"Let's not allow barriers to be put up in NATO. This does not provide benefit," Rutte said.
Rutte addressed the war in Ukraine, noting that many countries, seeing their stockpiles dwindling, have invested in Ukraine's defense industry base to enable the country to produce weapons needed for the war.
He said this approach helps Ukrainians while also strengthening NATO's defense industry foundation in the long term.
1 min read
The NATO summit in The Hague has been focused on keeping U.S. President Donald Trump satisfied after his return to power sparked fears he could undermine the seven-decade-old alliance.
NATO's 32 countries have negotiated a compromise deal to dedicate 3.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) to core military needs by 2035 and 1.5% to broader security-related areas such as cybersecurity and infrastructure, seeking to satisfy Trump's insistence on 5% defense spending.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned Russia could attack a NATO country within five years to test Article 5, which considers an attack against one NATO member as an attack against all.
In an interview with Sky News aired Tuesday, Zelenskyy said he believes Russia could target a NATO member state, though he does not believe Russian President Vladimir Putin is ready for such action within months.
"We believe that, starting from 2030, Putin can have significantly greater capabilities," Zelenskyy noted, referring to NATO's defense spending timeline.
"Today, Ukraine is holding him up; he has no time to drill the army," the Ukrainian president said. He added that Putin "needs a pause" and needs "sanctions to be lifted," warning, "10 years is a very long time. He will have a new army ready (by then)."
Zelenskyy's warnings came during his visit to London on Monday, where he held talks with U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer focused on bolstering defense cooperation.
The U.K. and Ukraine signed a "landmark agreement" to share battlefield technology. The deal will boost Ukraine's drone production and link the UK's defense industry "with the cutting-edge technology being developed on the front lines in Ukraine," according to the UK Prime Minister's Office.
Zelenskyy expressed concerns that sanctions against Russia are not working effectively, as some countries allow dual-use components used in drone and missile production to reach Russia.
3 min read
