NATO Sec. General on Ukraine: ‘More Military Aid and Less Discussions on What a Peace Process Could Look Like’

EXCERPT:

RUTTE: "Let me be very firm on this. And here, I will quote Zelenskyy, end of February 2022, when some countries offered him a plane to bring him into safety in Poland, and he said, 'I don't need a ride. I need ammunition.' I would now argue that Ukraine doesn't need more ideas on what a peace process could look like. And you and I can sit together and drink a cup of coffee, and we can think of many ways how to deal with a peace process whenever that starts. But I would argue, let's not have all these discussions step by step on what a peace process might look like. Make sure that Ukraine has what it needs to get to a position of strength when those peace talks start, when the Ukrainian government has decided they are ready to do so. And that is what we will very much focus on the next two days, how to get more military aid into Ukraine, more missile defense into Ukraine, better coordination of everything we are doing, making sure that the command in Wiesbaden will be up and running as soon as possible, that the pledge is implemented, that is what we need to do. So I would say more military aid and less discussions on what a peace process could look like. You and I will – are smart enough to think of many ways how to deal with that, but we have to bring Ukraine to that position that it can start, and it can only start when they are in a position of strength."