NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on Sunday suggested that the upcoming meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska could mark a turning point in the Ukraine war, provided Putin is truly serious about peace.
“Next Friday will be important because it will be about testing Putin, how serious he is on bringing this terrible war to an end,” Rutte said on ABC News’s This Week segment.
Sovereignty and Security at the Core
Rutte further stressed that the Friday summit will focus not only on ceasefire conditions, but also long-term security for Ukraine and its right to self-determination.
“It will be, of course, about security guarantees, but also about the absolute need to acknowledge that Ukraine decides on its own future, that Ukraine has to be a sovereign nation, deciding on its own geopolitical future,” he told ABC News.
The NATO chief, who previously served as Dutch prime minister, further said that he believes Trump shares this stance. “The president wants to end this. He wants to end the terrible loss of life,” Rutte added while also acknowledging the complicated facts pertaining to the realities of the battleground.
“The question will be how to go forward past a ceasefire, including what it means in terms of security guarantees for Ukraine,” Rutte noted, recognising that Russia currently controls parts of Ukraine’s territory.
“It will be about territory. It will be, of course, about security guarantees… Ukraine has to be a sovereign nation… NATO to have no limitations on our presence on the eastern flank in countries like Latvia, Estonia and Finland,” he further said, per the publication.
Trump Under Fire for Format
Meanwhile, Trump’s decision to meet Putin without including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appears to have drawn widespread criticism from across circles. Former national security adviser John Bolton criticised the move, telling ABC, “He (Trump) has allowed Putin to get first mover advantage by putting his peace plan on the table first.”
Rutte, for his part, said the summit could be “a valid starting point”, much while stressing that any peace deal must include Ukraine at the table.
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