NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has declared that “We are Russia’s next target” and told citizens to “be prepared for the scale of war our grandparents and great-grandparents endured.” Speaking in Berlin, Germany, Rutte pressed NATO governments to dramatically increase defense spending and industrial output ahead of a potential general war with the Russian Federation. “I fear that too many are quietly complacent. Too many don’t feel the urgency. And too many believe that time is on our side. It is not. The time for action is now,” Rutte stated, emphasizing his role as a former Prime Minister of the Netherlands.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is holding intensive talks with leaders from around 30 nations, including Germany, the United Kingdom, and France, to address Russia’s ongoing invasion. However, his recent appeals for “doable and realistic steps” to end the fighting have been condemned as inadequate by international analysts given the severity of the crisis.
U.S. President Donald J. Trump recently urged Zelensky to agree to a compromise peace with Russia, remarking: “I give the people of Ukraine and the military of Ukraine tremendous credit for the bravery and for the fighting and all of that. But, you know, at some point, size will win, generally.”
Russia’s population exceeds Ukraine’s by more than three times, and its industrial capacity is substantially greater than that of Ukraine.
