NATO secretary general says Putin is "running out of money, troops and ideas"

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has stated that Russian leader Vladimir Putin is running out of resources to continue the war against Ukraine.

Source: Rutte at a press conference following the meeting of the Coalition of the Willing in London

Details: Rutte believes the situation on the line of contact shows the ineffectiveness of Russia's strategy and the enormous price that they are paying for minor advances.

Quote: "In Ukraine, Putin is gaining little new ground on the battlefield – and where there are marginal gains they are coming at a huge price. Hundreds of thousands of Russians are dying for Putin's deluded aggression. Ukraine continues defending itself bravely and our support to them is working. The truth is that Putin is running out of money, troops and ideas."

Details: Rutte stressed that the time has come to increase pressure on Russia to achieve a just peace. In this context, he welcomed the recent announcements by European allies and Canada on providing additional military assistance to Ukraine and the approval of the 19th package of sanctions.

"The developments on the battlefield show that our support to Ukraine is working, and we need to keep it up. We need to pair this support with sanctions and economic pressure [on Russia]," he emphasised.

Rutte is optimistic regarding Western unity, mentioning "good discussions" this week in Washington, Brussels and London, which in his view indicate movement in the right direction to end the war.

Background: On 13 October, Rutte mocked the state of the Russian navy, noting that Moscow's naval presence in the Mediterranean had virtually vanished.