NATO must shift to wartime mindset, secretary general warns

The head of NATO has warned the alliance is not ready for the threats it will face from Russia in the coming years and that it is time to shift to a wartime mindset.

Mark Rutte, the secretary general of the organisation, said NATO members had spent more than 3% of GDP on defence during the Cold War and argued future spending would have to be much higher than the alliance’s current target of 2%.

“Russia is preparing for long-term confrontation, with Ukraine and with us,” Mr Rutte said during a speech in Brussels.

“We are not ready for what is coming our way in four to five years,” the NATO secretary general said.

He added: “It is time to shift to a wartime mindset, and turbocharge our defence production and defence spending.”

Mr Rutte said the current security situation was the “worst in my lifetime”.

NATO leaders agreed to end the defence cuts that began when the Cold War ended after Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula a decade ago, moving towards spending 2% of GDP on their military budgets.

But since Russia invaded Ukraine almost three years ago they have agreed the 2% target should be the minimum for defence spending.

While the alliance meets that target collectively, around a third of members do not hit it individually. At least 23 of its 32 members will meet the 2% target this year, the alliance estimates.

US president-elect Donald Trump, who assumes office on 20 January, has threatened that the US will not defend “delinquent” countries.

The alliance is founded on the principle that an attack on one member is considered an attack on them all and Mr Trump’s comments raised fears over whether the US would act to help in a crisis.

Mr Rutte, a former Dutch prime minister, called on NATO members to “stop creating barriers between each other and between industries, banks and pension funds”.

In a message to the defence industry, he said: “There is money on the table, and it will only increase. So dare to innovate and take risks.”

Mr Rutte also warned of a “coordinated campaign to destabilise our societies,” which included cyberattacks and assassination attempts.

He also said NATO must be clear-eyed about China’s ambitions and cautioned Beijing is building up its forces “with no transparency and no limitations” and bullying Taiwan.

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