Rutte says he does not take Russia's Kaliningrad nuclear threat seriously

The Kremlin confirmed on Wednesday that Russia had sent NATO a warning linked to the Kaliningrad exclave, with presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov saying it was meant to remind "hotheads in Europe" of Moscow's position. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte played down the warning at a Euronews defence summit in Brussels the same day, saying the alliance faces no immediate danger and accusing Russia of trying to draw attention away from setbacks in Ukraine.

Rutte said NATO's assessment of the threat had not changed from recent weeks and months, and that the alliance had long prepared for this kind of scenario and remained capable of defending every part of its members' territory.

His comments came after Russia's embassy in Belgium sent NATO a formal warning that Moscow would use every weapon at its disposal, nuclear arms included, to stop the alliance from cutting Kaliningrad off from the rest of Russian territory. Rutte declined to detail the letter's contents, saying that was for Russia to disclose. NATO spokeswoman Allison Hart confirmed the alliance sent a written response, saying it noted NATO is a defensive alliance and that none of its activities pose a risk to Russia.

Russian embassies in at least three European countries have published similar statements in recent days, accusing NATO of raising tensions through military exercises and scenarios involving Kaliningrad, Die Presse reported. A senior European defence official called the warning serious, saying it was the first such threat from Moscow since the Cold War, Reuters reported; a NATO diplomat described it as a Russian attempt at intimidation.

One NATO diplomat briefed on Russia's letter described it as textbook Russian propaganda meant to intimidate allied public opinion into dropping support for Ukraine while pinning blame for any escalation on NATO. A second alliance diplomat said Russia tends to accelerate its rhetoric when it is most at fault or losing ground.

Bulgarian president Rumen Radev, also speaking at the summit, called for European dialogue with Russia to avert a nuclear attack, while rejecting the Kremlin's rhetoric; he said Russia could be prone to use what he called the nuclear card if it felt cornered. EU Defence Commissioner Andrius Kubilius rejected that approach, warning that dialogue could embolden Putin and undermine Ukraine, and saying Russia's position remained that Ukraine must surrender.

Rutte called on Russia to drop what he termed unhelpful nuclear signalling and to halt its war against Ukraine, which he characterised as unprovoked aggression. He dismissed any prospect of a genuine nuclear escalation against the Baltic states, arguing that Russian President Vladimir Putin has no path to defeating the alliance militarily, and said any Russian move against Finland, Poland or another NATO country would be preceded by a military build-up.

Rutte put Russian battlefield losses at roughly 43,000 soldiers a month, killed or severely injured, and said Ukraine's military position had improved markedly compared with a year earlier as Western support continued. Separately, he told Interfax he expects American-led diplomacy to eventually produce a settlement to the war, though he could not say whether that would happen before winter, adding that striking a deal takes compromise from both sides and that Putin did not so far appear willing to do so. Russia also plans to sharply raise its defence spending next year to sustain the war, according to a draft budget due before its parliament.