The North Atlantic alliance plans to work with the European Union, Ukraine and the Indo-Pacific region to strengthen cooperation in the defence industry, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said at the closing of the alliance’s summit in The Hague on 25 June.
He noted in particular that the alliance continues to “stand firmly on the side of our neighbour and partner, Ukraine”.
“My dear friend Vladimir Zelensky is here in The Hague with us at the NATO summit together with his team. Our resounding message to him and to the Ukrainian people is that Ukraine has our continued support, in particular the more than 35 billion euros pledged since the beginning of the year and more to come,” he said.
Rutte described the alliance’s goal as to continue Ukraine’s combat capability today for the sake of sustainable peace in the future.
“We support Ukraine in its quest for peace and will continue to support Ukraine on its irreversible path to NATO membership,” he added.
The secretary-general said the summit agreed on a direction of travel that would ensure their ability to “defend our freedom and security in the future.”
The NATO summit earlier approved the final declaration, which named Russia as a long-term threat, with allies pledging to help Ukraine.
On 24 June, the NATO summit began in The Hague in the Netherlands. On the eve, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte made it clear that the new NATO defence investment plan of 5 percent would be “decisive” for ensuring effective deterrence.