“Our deterrence is good – for now. But it’s tomorrow I’m worried about. We are not ready for what is coming our way in four to five years,” Rutte warned.
“Russia, China, but also North Korea and Iran, are hard at work to try to weaken North America and Europe. To chip away at our freedom. They want to reshape the global order. Not to create a fairer one, but to secure their own spheres of influence,” Rutte stressed.
”China is substantially building up its forces, including its nuclear weapons – with no transparency and no limitations. From 200 warheads in 2020, China is expected to have more than 1,000 nuclear weapons by 2030,” he stressed.
“Its space-launch investments are skyrocketing. China is bullying Taiwan and pursuing access to our critical infrastructure in ways that could cripple our societies.”
Closer to NATO headquarters in Brussels, “it takes one day to drive to Ukraine. One day. That’s how close the Russian bombs are falling. It’s how close the Iranian drones are flying. And not very much further, the North Korean soldiers are fighting,” he added about Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Rutte noticed that Russia’s defense industry produces vast numbers of tanks, armored vehicles, and ammunition. “What Russia lacks in quality, it makes up for in quantity – with the help of China, Iran, and North Korea.”
As a broader war seemed imminent, “We have more forces at higher readiness. Larger and more frequent military exercises,” he said.
“More troops and hardware on our eastern flank. And, with Finland and Sweden, more NATO Allies,” Rutte explained.
Several European governments have already advised citizens to prepare a backpack with emergency supplies for several days, including water, food, and batteries for flashlights, radio sets, and mobile phones.
This week, banks in the Netherlands, one of Europe’s leading tech-savvy, services-providing nations, to keep more cash at home amid concerns about possible Russian strikes on key infrastructure.
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