Allies of Ukraine set to hold a summit on Thursday

3/9/2025 17:42

NATO Secretary General Mark

Rutte said on Wednesday he expects clarity at a summit of

Ukraine's allies on Thursday "or soon after" on what security

guarantees Europe can offer Kyiv after Russia's war in Ukraine

comes to a halt.



"I expect tomorrow, or soon after tomorrow, to have clarity

on what collectively we can deliver," Rutte told a press

conference with Estonian President Alar Karis at NATO

headquarters in Brussels.



"That means that we can engage even more intensely, also

with the American side, to see what they want to deliver in

terms of their participation in security guarantees."



French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister

Keir Starmer will co-host Thursday's mostly virtual meeting of

leaders of the "coalition of the willing" of mainly European

allies who have been working on security guarantees for Ukraine.



Such guarantees are intended to deter Russia from attacking

Ukraine again after the war stops, whether through a ceasefire

or a permanent peace deal.



Western officials say the most important element of the

guarantees will be continuing strong support for Ukraine's armed

forces, but the measures are also expected to include an

international force to reassure Kyiv.



European leaders have made clear such a force will be

feasible only with U.S. support. U.S. President Donald Trump

promised this last month but Washington has yet to spell out

what it is willing to contribute.



Rutte sought at the press conference to reassure eastern

European NATO members that any resources devoted to security

guarantees for Ukraine would not weaken the Western military

alliance's defences against Russia on its eastern flank.



"We have to prevent spreading our resources too thinly, and

this means that we always have to look at what the impact will

be on the NATO (defence) plans," he said.