Russia's 'airspace violations, sabotage are reckless, dangerous,' says NATO chief

Speaking at the opening of the foreign ministers' meeting in Brussels, Rutte said the alliance is assessing progress made in strengthening collective defense since the "historic" The Hague Summit, while preparing for the next leaders' summit in Ankara, Türkiye, in July 2026.

Rutte stressed that the security environment remains tense as "Russia continues to test NATO's deterrence," adding that Moscow's actions are not isolated.

"Russia has violated our airspace with jets and drones, conducted sabotage and sent spy ships into our waters. These actions are reckless and they are dangerous," he said.

Recent months have seen drones allegedly linked to Russia violate Polish and Romanian airspace, disrupt airports and military sites in Western Europe, and a key rail line between Warsaw and Kyiv sabotaged in November. Poland has since deployed 10,000 troops to protect critical infrastructure, while Russia denies any involvement.

"It is working closely with China, North Korea and Iran to attempt to disrupt our societies and tear up the global rules," he added.

Rutte underlined that NATO is responding with "strength, unity and resolve," while European allies and Canada are increasing defense spending. Still, he urged members to accelerate efforts.

"We cannot afford to rest on our laurels. We all need to pull our weight and fast," he noted, calling for greater investment in defense capabilities, industry, infrastructure and innovation to boost resilience.

He also highlighted the urgent need to ramp up support for Ukraine as winter intensifies and Russian missile attacks continue.

"Ukraine needs our support more than ever. We all want the bloodshed to stop, and I strongly welcome (US) President (Donald) Trump's continued efforts to end this war," he said.

He urged allies to speed up their contributions to the Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) – the US-NATO mechanism allowing European and Canadian allies to fund purchases of American-made weapons for Ukraine – to provide Kyiv with urgently needed equipment.

Later in the day, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha is expected to brief ministers at the NATO–Ukraine Council working lunch on Kyiv's latest needs and peace efforts.