US to face 'dire threats' if Ukraine is made to accept Russia's terms, Nato chief warns Trump

Nato chief Mark Rutte has warned US President-elect Donald Trump that the United States would face “dire threats” if Ukraine is made to accept Russia’s terms.

The warning comes as Trump is widely expected to stop or curtail the aid to Ukraine and push it to accept a deal favourable to Russia. In contrast to outgoing President Joe Biden, Trump is not a supporter of Ukraine and is instead deemed to have a friendly outlook for Russia.

Amid such concerns, Rutte said that Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran are essentially working as a bloc and an outcome of the war favourable to Russia would embolden China, the principal US adversary.

“We cannot have a situation where we have [North Korean leader] Kim Jong Un and the Russian leader and Xi Jinping and Iran high-fiving because we came to a deal which is not good for Ukraine, because long-term that will be a dire security threat not only to Europe but also to the US,” said Rutte in an interview with Financial Times.

Rutte told the newspaper he conveyed the warning to Trump during their meeting in Florida on November 22.

Trump has said that he would end the war in Ukraine in 24 hours. While he has not outlined his plan, his allies, including incoming Vice President JD Vance, have supported plans that would essentially force Ukraine into accepting Russia’s terms.

Rutte flags emerging bloc of adversaries

Rutte said that the conflicts in Ukraine, Indo-Pacific, and West Asia are increasingly connected.

In an apparent reference to the self-ruling island of Taiwan, Rutte said that Chinese President Xi Jinping “might get thoughts about something else in the future if there is not a good deal [for Ukraine]”.

China considers Taiwan to be a breakaway province and is committed to its reunification with the mainland — even with the use of force.

Rutte said he told Trump: “Look at the missile technology which is now being sent from Russia into North Korea, which is posing a dire threat not only to South Korea, Japan, but also to the US mainland. Iran is getting money from Russia in return for, for example, missiles, but also drone technology. And the money is being used to prop up Hezbollah and Hamas, but also steering conflict beyond the region."

These nations are working together in a way that various conflicts in the world are “more and more getting connected”, said Rutte.

“So the fact that Iran, North Korea, China and Russia are working so closely together . . . [means] these various parts of the world where conflict is, and have to be managed by politicians, are more and more getting connected,” said Rutte.

‘Military aide to Ukraine first priority’

Rutte said that even though Nato member-states are discussing the question of Nato’s membership, the first priority is to provide military aid to Ukraine.

Rutte told FT, “The most important thing now is to make sure that whenever Zelenskyy decides to get into peace talks, that he can do this from a position of strength. That for me is now priority number one.”

Ukraine has pressed both the Nato and European Union (EU) to induct Ukraine as a member. The idea is that the memberships of these blocs would extent military and economic security guarantees to Ukraine in future. Despite willingness for an induction, it is unlikely to happen before the end of the war.

Rutte said that it’s fine to have such discussions but the top focus should be on to boost Ukraine’s war-waging abilities, not just defensive operations but also offensive capabilities.

“But what I always say to them when they ask me: I say, well, that’s all very fine and we need to have these debates, but for the immediate future, the most important thing is to get your military aid into Ukraine, particularly air defence, but also the offensive systems they need to fight a war,” said Rutte.