NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stated that the Alliance remains a defensive organization, but stressed that any attack on member countries will receive a strong response.
During a press conference, Rutte stated that NATO's mission is to protect the approximately one billion citizens of member countries and not to launch attacks on other countries.
"We are a defensive alliance, to protect 1 billion people. We never attack another country, but we do make sure that if others decide to attack us, our response must be very strong," he said.
Rutte also touched on the war in Ukraine, emphasizing that such aggressions have no place in the 21st century and that not only borders, but also democratic values are at risk.
"In the 21st century, you cannot attack like Russia did with Ukraine because it is the values that are threatened, democracy. It is not just the free world, the media is a pillar of democracy and society has a duty to make its opinions known," said Rutte.
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