NATO has reversed Russia’s edge in ammunition production, Rutte says
NATO has now surpassed Russia in ammunition production after a period when Moscow outpaced the entire alliance’s output, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said in Bucharest on Nov. 6.
"Until recently, Russia was producing more ammunition than all NATO Allies put together. But not anymore," Rutte said at the NATO-Industry Forum in the Romanian capital.
He credited the shift to an expansion of defense production capacity across the alliance. "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," he said, urging defense industries to "step up supply, expand existing production lines, and open new ones."
Rutte's comments come amid a broader effort by European countries to expand their defense industries to strengthen both their own security and Ukraine’s defenses against Russian aggression.
Rutte emphasized that "there simply is no strong defense without a strong defense industry," adding that NATO leaders had agreed to raise defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2035 and to accelerate procurement of critical systems such as drones, ammunition, and air defense.
"The threats we face are real and lasting. Russia’s unprovoked war against Ukraine is the most obvious example," Rutte said, warning that "the danger posed by Russia will not end when this war does."
He also said Russia’s growing military cooperation with China, Iran, and North Korea poses a long-term challenge: "They are increasing their defense industrial collaboration to unprecedented levels. They are preparing for long-term confrontation."
Rutte urged NATO members and their defense industries to "outgun, outproduce, and outsmart those that seek to harm or diminish us." Speaking during a visit to Germany earlier this year, Rutte said that Europe is able to produce six times more artillery shells annually than it could two years earlier, with output expected to reach 2 million rounds by the end of the year.
Francis Farrell
