The NATO leaders’ summit in June, hosted in The Hague, will be crucial in establishing future goals.

Prime Minister Rutte emphasized that in the coming months, there will be a collective movement toward a budget target, stating that prioritizing defense spending will require difficult choices as governments must weigh military funding against popular social welfare initiatives.

To effectively allocate additional resources, the alliance is setting new capability benchmarks. According to Rutte, there is a notable shortage of air defense systems, long-range missiles, and tanks necessary for maintaining effective military operations.

Reflecting on the past four decades, Rutte noted, “Europe and Canada have not invested enough in defense, especially following the fall of the Berlin Wall. The United States is understandably calling for a fairer distribution of defense responsibilities, which is a reasonable expectation.”

Despite recent remarks by U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth cautioning that European allies should not take the permanence of America’s military presence for granted, Rutte affirmed Washington’s ongoing dedication to NATO.

With the United States contributing over 50 percent of NATO’s GDP, Rutte characterized the alliance as predominantly an American-led organization, while reinforcing that there remains a solid commitment from the U.S. toward NATO’s objectives.

The NATO Secretary General highlighted that “all options are on the table” regarding potential peace negotiations to resolve the conflict in Ukraine. Contradictory statements from figures like Trump and Hegseth regarding Ukraine’s NATO membership and the prospects of reclaiming territory previously annexed by Russia have led to some confusion—though Hegseth has since sought to clarify his earlier statements.

Rutte concluded by emphasizing the necessity of concluding the conflict in a manner that prevents Putin from seizing any additional territory in Ukraine, stating, “I believe that achieving a resolution without conceding ground will be a favorable outcome.”