NATO Secretary General says Russia's war against Ukraine could end this year

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte suggested on Wednesday that there is a possibility that Russia's war against Ukraine will end by the end of 2025.

"Of course. We are all praying for the earliest possible end to this war," Rutte said in an interview with the newspaper El Pais, answering the question "whether it is possible that the war will end by the end of this year."

"I want to do everything possible to help US President Trump realize his vision of a settlement," the alliance's Secretary General said.

"It is always difficult to predict, but I sincerely hope that peace will come soon. Of course, after the Geneva talks, several more meetings need to be held, as well as a separate, parallel discussion of some issues with the EU and NATO. And we have not yet reached that point," Rutte said.

He also noted that a peace agreement on Ukraine will not change the situation regarding Russia. "Russia will continue to be a long-term threat for a long time. (...) The peace plan does not change the assessment of Russia as a long-term threat to Europe," he said. On the eve, Trump said that he was satisfied with the way negotiations on the Ukrainian settlement were going with both Moscow and Kiev. In his opinion, the parties may come to the conclusion that the US proposals for resolving the conflict are beneficial to them. Rutte also noted that on some points the negotiations are difficult and may take a lot of time.