01 October 2024
New NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and Crimea: Key Views
On October 1, Mark Rutte took office as the 14th Secretary General of NATO. The former Prime Minister of the Netherlands supported Ukraine and succeeded in providing Ukraine with weapons and ammunition worth more than 210 million euros, including F-16 fighter aircraft.
The new Secretary General stated that Ukraine is a personal and NATO priority. In particular, he condemned Russia’s criminal war against the Ukrainian people. He emphasized that Russia is waging a war not only against Ukraine but against the rule of international law and democracy:
“This is an unjust war against everything we stand for. This is a war against freedom, democracy, and the rule of law in our part of the world. That’s why we stand with the Ukrainian people and why you can count on our unwavering support. Russia cannot win this war, and it must be held accountable for all the crimes of aggression and the injustice that is inflicted on the people of Ukraine day after day in this horrific war,” Mark Rutte stated during the visit of the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the Netherlands on May 4, 2023.
During his visit to Kyiv on February 17, 2023, in an interview with European Pravda, Mark Rutte emphasized that the Netherlands and the EU remain firm in their stance that Crimea is Ukraine. The former Prime Minister of the Netherlands supported President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s plan to de-occupy Crimea and all the territories occupied by the aggressor state, noting that Ukraine must do everything possible to achieve victory and justice:
“You must win. We want to help you. That is why we are already helping by providing significant military assistance. But it is not for me to decide what to do or not to do with Crimea. This is a matter for the Ukrainian government. For example, I would be outraged if something like this happened in the Netherlands and someone else said whether I should return Friesland,” Mark Rutte noted in an interview with the European Pravda media outlet.