Next year, Ukraine will spend about 25% of its GDP on defence, which is 900% more than the average of its European NATO allies, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said in a keynote speech in Brussels.

“This is a harsh reminder that freedom does not come for free. If we don’t spend together now to prevent war, we will pay a much higher price later for fighting. Not billions, but trillions of euros. And that’s if we prevail, if we win…”, said the Alliance’s chief.

According to him, security needs now require allies to spend much more than 2% of GDP on defence. Rutte also added that “Russia is preparing for a long-term confrontation with Ukraine and with us”.

“We are not ready for what is coming in four or five years. It’s time to shift to a wartime mindset and sharply increase our defence production and defence spending,” he stressed.