Will NATO cooperate with Turkey in the fight against terrorism? 'More is needed to combat the threat...'

NATO's new Secretary General Mark Rutte touched upon the importance of counter-terrorism in his first press conference in Brussels and emphasized his willingness to work with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Rutte held his first press conference at NATO headquarters in Brussels after taking office.

'I am deeply honored to serve as Secretary General of NATO, the most successful political-military alliance in history,' said Rutte, explaining that NATO allies are facing serious challenges.

Rutte stated, 'All 32 allies have a unique role to play, and there is nothing we cannot achieve together,' and continued:

'However, we need more defense spending to truly match our capabilities with our needs. I will work with allies to ensure we are investing enough in the right areas and sharing the burden of our collective defense equally. Each of us must pay our fair share.'

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan

'WE WILL WORK TOGETHER IN THE FIGHT AGAINST TERRORISM'

The new NATO Secretary General stated that they would increase their engagement with partners to promote stability in the Middle East, North Africa, and the Sahel regions. Emphasizing that more effort must be made to combat the terrorist threat, Rutte expressed that he is open to cooperation on this issue with the President of Turkey and AKP Chairman Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Rutte said, 'We will increase our engagement with our partners in the Middle East, North Africa, and the Sahel regions to promote stability in our active southern neighborhood. We must do more to combat the terrorist threat to our countries and our people.'

Rutte remarked, 'I can say that we are close friends and that we agree on counter-terrorism. It is clear that the fight against terrorism is a subject we must also address within the NATO context.'

Expressing that he is open to working with President Erdoğan on counter-terrorism, Rutte said, 'We need to work together on this. We will do that.'

Rutte also emphasized the importance of having no restrictions on arms purchases between allies, noting, 'There is a sensitivity regarding this, and we need to work on this as well.'

President Erdoğan has accused NATO many times over the past years of not providing sufficient support for Turkey's fight against terrorism

WILL NATO ALLOW UKRAINE TO USE LONG-RANGE MISSILES AGAINST RUSSIA?

Rutte was also asked about his view on Ukraine's request to use weapons supplied by NATO allies to strike military targets inside Russia.

The new Secretary General stated the following regarding the issue:

'Ukraine is fighting a war of self-defense, and that means Ukraine has the right to defend itself. As we know, under international law, this right does not end at the border. This means that supporting Ukraine's right to self-defense also makes it possible for them to strike legitimate targets on the aggressor's territory.'

Noting that the final decision on this matter belongs to the allied countries, Rutte said, 'It is not up to me. It is up to individual allies in their relationship with Ukraine. We must also be clear that no single weapon will win the war on its own.'

Pointing to the scale of military aid provided to Ukraine by the US, Rutte assessed, 'The US and its leaders have spent tens of billions of dollars to support Ukraine's right to defend itself. Let's be clear, without US support, Ukraine would likely not exist as a country today.'

Russian officials frequently claim that they are at war not only with Ukraine but also with NATO. The reason for this is the perception that NATO is playing an active role in supporting Ukraine in the war