Ukraine has to be in the strongest possible position when it decides to sit down with Russia as this is the global geopolitical context, said NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte at the Ramstein meeting.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on Thursday urged continued military support for Ukraine after nearly three years of war, warning that reduced support could embolden countries like China, North Korea and Iran.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stated that Ukraine must be in the strongest possible position when the time comes for negotiations with Russia. He made the remarks on Thursday, Jan. 9, during a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group at Ramstein Air Base.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said on Thursday that he is working to persuade US President-elect Donald Trump to ease access for European partners to US weapons systems. Rutte told dpa that European allies are already investing hundreds of billions of dollars in the US defence industry.

Russia is suspected in a wide range of indirect attacks in Europe, including cutting undersea cables.

The NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte, stated that he aims to persuade Donald Trump to make it easier for European allies to purchase military equipment from the US. He emphasized on Thursday in an interview with dpa that Europe could buy more if not for the strict American export regulations.

Ukraine's leader says partners sending ground troops would help "force Russia into peace," as America's European allies ponder Trump's next move.

Finland says a ship affiliated with Russia's "shadow fleet" is linked to a 60-mile-long anchor drag mark on the seafloor. A power cable in the Baltic Sea was severed last week.

Finland said last week it detained a ship that may be from Russia's shadow fleet of oil tankers as part of a probe into a damaged undersea cable.

In a post on X, Rutte said that he had spoken to Finland ... Finland, which shares a 1,340-kilometer (832-mile) border with Russia, joined NATO in 2023, abandoning a decades-old policy of ...

Russia has assembled a fleet of hundreds of vessels to covertly ship its oil. With so many ships at sea, the idea of using some to cause havoc may be proving irresistible to the Kremlin.

Russia’s use of the vessels has raised environmental concerns about accidents given their age and uncertain insurance coverage. In the wake of the cable rupture, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said last week that the military alliance, which Finland ...