Rutte harshly criticizes Russia's Lavrov over NATO remarks
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte (Getty Images)
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte sharply criticized Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov over his recent comments about the collapse of the Alliance, Rutte said in an interview with Fox News.
What led up to this
A few days ago, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was asked to respond to comments by his Polish counterpart, Radosław Sikorski, who predicted the collapse of the Putin regime as a result of the ongoing arms race. In response, Lavrov suggested that the significant increase in NATO member states' defense budgets could also lead to the collapse of the Alliance.
What Rutte said
Commenting on Lavrov's statement, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte praised what he described as a major foreign policy achievement by US President Donald Trump and his administration in securing increased NATO defense spending. Rutte dismissed Lavrov's relevance, suggesting that the Russian minister had long ceased to offer any meaningful or constructive contributions, and said his remarks should not be given much attention.
Risk of war between Russia and NATO
Russia has consistently exploited the issue of Ukraine's potential NATO membership. In particular, prior to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the Kremlin claimed that NATO was carrying out a gradual invasion of Ukraine, and that Moscow could no longer tolerate it.
Meanwhile, during a recent NATO summit, US President Donald Trump shifted his rhetoric and expressed strong support for the Alliance and its defense mission. According to military intelligence, Putin is preparing to attack NATO member states within the next five years.
According to a scenario published by Bloomberg, the assault would begin with the Baltic states.
