NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has issued a stark warning to Russian President Vladimir Putin, stressing that a nuclear war “can never be won and must never be fought.”
According to Reuters, Rutte said the success of NATO’s annual nuclear exercise earlier this month gave him “absolute confidence in the credibility of NATO’s nuclear deterrence” amid growing Russian threats.
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“When Russia is using dangerous and reckless nuclear rhetoric, our populations must know that there is no need to panic, because NATO has a strong nuclear deterrent,” Rutte said.
“And Putin must know that nuclear war can never be won and must never be fought.”
The warning comes after Putin repeatedly hinted at possible nuclear escalation since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. He declared last month that Russia could use nuclear weapons if it was struck with conventional missiles, and that Moscow would consider any assault on it supported by a nuclear power to be a joint attack.
On Thursday Kyiv Post reported that NATO has overtaken Russia in ammunition production after years of lagging behind.
Until recently, Russia was producing more ammunition than all NATO members combined, Rutte said, noting that this dynamic has now reversed as Allies open “dozens of new production lines” and accelerate deliveries across the defense sector.
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“We are already turning the tide on ammunition,” Rutte told industry leaders, emphasizing that NATO states are now manufacturing “more than we have done in decades.”
He stressed that increased output, faster delivery times, and long-term investment remain essential as the Alliance prepares for prolonged strategic competition.
The Secretary General warned that the security environment facing NATO is “real and lasting,” with Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine representing the clearest example of the threat.
“Russia’s unprovoked war against Ukraine is the most obvious example of the threat,” he said. “But the danger posed by Russia will not end when this war does. For the foreseeable future, Russia will remain a destabilizing force in Europe and the world.”