'We will defend every inch of NATO territory’: Rutte dismisses Russia’s nuclear threat

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on Wednesday dismissed Russian nuclear warnings over Kaliningrad, saying Moscow could not win a confrontation with the alliance.

Speaking at the Euronews Defense and Space Summit in Brussels, Rutte said NATO was prepared to defend its territory.

"We will defend every inch of NATO territory. That threat is not there, and if anything happens, we are ready to counter it," he said.

His comments followed reports that Russia, in a letter, had warned NATO against any attempt to cut off Kaliningrad, its western exclave between Poland and Lithuania, saying it was prepared to use its entire arsenal, including nuclear weapons.

Rutte declined to confirm the contents of the reported letter but rejected the suggestion of an imminent nuclear threat to the Baltic states.

"We are a defensive alliance. Stop the nuclear threat. This is absolutely not called for and not helpful. And particularly stop the war in Ukraine, which is an unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine," he said.

Rutte also said Russian President Vladimir Putin could not defeat NATO. "Everybody knows that he can never win against NATO. I don't take this seriously."

EUROPE'S DEFENSE ROLE

Rutte said Russia was suffering heavy losses in Ukraine and claimed 43,000 troops were being killed or seriously wounded each month.

He said Moscow was trying to divide NATO allies and shift attention away from the battlefield.

"If necessary, of course we will defend ourselves. But the most important thing is this is all happening because the war is not going well for him in Ukraine. He wants to divide us. He wants us to lose attention when it comes to Ukraine," Rutte said.

The NATO secretary general also said Europe must become more capable of handling security threats without relying so heavily on Washington.

"Why are the Americans doing it, taking out the Iranian nuclear capability? Because we can't. But in the future, we have to make sure that as Europeans, we can do this ourselves," he said.

Rutte said increased European defense spending should eventually allow the continent to assume greater responsibility while keeping the US engaged in NATO.

"Still, the US being involved not only in the nuclear sense but also in the conventional sense, but the Europeans taking much, much more responsibility for the defense of this part of NATO," he said.