Vladimir Putin could attack a Nato country within five years, the head of the nuclear alliance has warned as he urged western nations to massively increase the amount they spend on defence.
Mark Rutte revealed that Russia produces as much ammunition in three months as Nato does in a year.
The secretary general’s comments, in a speech at Chatham House in London, came ahead of a crunch Nato summit, at which its members will be told to spend 5% of their gross domestic product on defence.
The UK currently spends 2.3%, but has pledged to hit 2.5% by 2027, with the aim of reaching 3% by 2034.
Rutte said: “I expect allied leaders will agree to spend 5% of GDP on defence. It will be a Nato-wide commitment and a defining moment for the alliance.
“There are two parts to this new defence spending plan: 3.5% will be invested in our core military requirements, the rest will go towards defence and security-related investments, including infrastructure and building industrial capacity.
“5% is not some figure plucked from the air. It’s grounded in hard facts.
“The fact is we need a quantum leap in our defence. The fact is we must have more forces and capability to implement our defence plans in full.”
He added: “Russia is reconstituting its forces with Chinese technology and producing more weapons faster than we thought. In terms of ammunition, Russia produces in three months what the whole of Nato produces in a year.”
Warning that Russia could attack Nato within five years, Rutte said: ”We are all on the eastern flank now.
“The new generation of Russian missiles travel at many times the speed of sound. The distance between European capitals is only a matter of minutes. There is no longer east or west. There is just Nato.”
Rutte also held talks in Downing Street with Keir Starmer, who described Nato as “the cornerstone of our defence”.
Unveiling the government’s strategic defence review last week, the prime minister said he was putting the UK on a war footing as he warned of “growing Russian aggression”.
Starmer said “the front line is here” as he warned that the UK faces greater threats now than at any time since the end of the Cold War more than 30 years ago.
