NATO’s Rutte calls on arms sector to take more risks

The Western arms industry needs to show greater readiness to take risks in expanding production, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said during a meeting with arms industry representatives in Bucharest on Thursday.

“Dangerous times call for bold action,” Rutte told the NATO Industry Forum.

“As you think of your shareholders, this may make you nervous.
You are waiting for governments to sign long-term contracts … Sometimes governments need to do that, but I can tell you that when it comes to investing more in our defence, the political will is there,” Rutte said.

“The political will is there, the money is there, the demand is there and our security depends on it,” he said.

“Don’t let the fear of future surplus capacity keep you from meeting the real needs we face today. I have every confidence that what you produce will be purchased,” he added.

Rutte offered the sector a deal: If it increased deliveries, expanded existing production lines and opened new ones, he pledged that NATO would do all in its power to accelerate purchases and would continue to support innovation.

He added that he would encourage governments to stick to their word and sign contracts.

“We need the equipment, real firepower, and of course … the most advanced tech, because the threats we face are real and lasting,” Rutte said. The danger posed by Russia would not end when the unprovoked war against Ukraine does, he said.

“For the foreseeable future, Russia will remain a destabilizing force in Europe and the world. And Russia is not alone in its efforts to undermine the global rules: As you know it is working with China, with North Korea, with Iran and others,” Rutte said.

These countries were expanding their military industrial collaboration to a level never seen before and were preparing for long-term confrontation, Rutte said.

Turning to NATO efforts to boost arms production, he noted that Russia had until recently produced more ammunition than all NATO countries taken together “but not any more,” he pledged.

“Across the alliance, we are now opening dozens of new production lines and expanding existing ones. We are making more than we have done in decades,” Rutte said.