Rutte considers restoration of 'normal' relations with Russia possible after war ends
After the Russia-Ukraine war ends, Western countries should restore "normal" relations with Moscow, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said in an interview with Bloomberg.
"It's normal if the war would have stopped for Europe somehow, step by step, and also for the U.S., step by step, to restore normal relations with Russia. But we are absolutely not there yet, we have to maintain the pressure on them" to guarantee that Russia takes the negotiations seriously, he said.
Earlier, the NATO chief met with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House, where they discussed a possible Ukraine ceasefire mediated by the United States.
"And finally, Ukraine. You broke the deadlock, as you said – all the killing, the young people dying, cities getting destroyed. The fact that you did that, that you started the dialogue with the Russians and the successful talks in Saudi Arabia, now with the Ukrainians, I really want to commend you for this," Rutte told Trump.
