Rutte: Ukraine has right to hit Russian territory, but it's up to supplier of long-range weapons to decide on lifting restrictions
The new Secretary General of NATO, Mark Rutte, supports the position of his predecessor Jens Stoltenberg that Ukraine has the right to strike the legitimate military targets on the territory of Russia, however it is up to the country that supplies relevant weapons to decide on lifting restrictions on such strikes.
He said this at a press conference at the NATO Headquarters in Brussels on Tuesday, following the ceremony of handing over the duties of Secretary General by Jens Stoltenberg.
"Let's not forget Ukraine is fighting a war of self-defense. And that means that Ukraine has the right to defend itself. And as we know, according to international law, this right does not end at the border. That means that supporting Ukraine's right to self-defense means that it is also possible for them to strike legitimate targets on the aggressor's territory. At the end, it's up to each ally to determine its support for Ukraine," Rutte said.
The Secretary General underlined that the issue of lifting restrictions "is for individual allies in their relationship with Ukraine."
"And we also have to be clear that not a single weapon alone will win the war," he said.
To a clarifying question of whether he supports Ukraine's request, Rutte said, "I can understand Ukraine's request. […] But in the end, it is up to each ally to decide what they want to do."
He also recalled that such partners as, for example, the United States "have spent tens of thousands, tens of billions of dollars to support Ukraine's right to self-defense."
"Let's be clear, Ukraine likely would not exist as a country today without the U.S. support," Rutte said.