Rutte says Russian hybrid attacks will not weaken Ukraine support
NATO's secretary-general said Moscow's hybrid attacks are failing to weaken support for Ukraine, hours after Estonia blamed Russia for an August factory fire.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said on Tuesday that Russia's hybrid attacks against alliance members would not weaken support for Ukraine, hours after Estonia attributed an August fire at a drone factory to Russian sabotage.
Speaking alongside Lithuanian Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevičius, Rutte said Russia was "trying to weaken our resolve and end our support for Ukraine" but was "failing" both on the battlefield and in its attempts to undermine allied unity. "We are stronger and they know it," he said. He also appealed for calm, urging people not to give in to fear as such incidents increase.
Rutte welcomed Estonia's public attribution of the fire to Russian sabotage, saying that sharing information between allies helped "attribute responsibility" and build a full picture of events. He said NATO had "all response options" available, some visible and some not, and that responses would not always follow a tit-for-tat logic.
Observador reported growing concern among European governments over a rise in such attacks, which fall below the threshold of what is considered an act of war or a military operation, citing arson and sabotage as examples.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov rejected the accusations the same day, telling reporters on the sidelines of a forum in Moscow that Russia was acting to "neutralise a direct threat" by striking infrastructure used to arm Ukraine, according to the Spanish news agency EuropaPress. He said countries supplying weapons used against Russian territory were themselves waging war on Russia.
Sinkevičius said Russia was trying to "sow fear and provoke divisions" in European societies but would not succeed. Several European countries have accused Moscow in recent weeks of intensifying a hybrid campaign of sabotage, cyberattacks and migration pressure aimed at testing support for Ukraine. The Kremlin has dismissed the accusations as a "deliberate exaggeration" by European governments seeking to justify higher military spending and continued support for Ukraine to their own populations.
What we know
- NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said Russia's hybrid attacks would not weaken support for Ukraine.
- Estonia attributed an August fire at a drone factory to Russian sabotage.
- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow was acting to neutralise a "direct threat".
- Lithuanian Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevičius said Russia was trying to sow fear and division.
Why it matters for Europe
European governments have accused Russia of an intensifying hybrid campaign of sabotage, cyberattacks and migration pressure meant to test support for Ukraine. Estonia's public attribution of the drone-factory fire is one of several such incidents reported across the region this year, and comes as NATO allies discuss a joint mechanism for responding to attacks that fall below the threshold of an armed attack.
Sources
Reported by 2 reports from 2 independent outlets in 1 countries.
- Notícias ao Minuto: NATO garante que ataques híbridos de Moscovo não enfraquecerão apoio
- Observador: NATO: ataques híbridos de Moscovo não enfraquecerão Ucrânia
Intelligence file
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Questions and answers
- What did NATO's Mark Rutte say about Russia's hybrid attacks?
- He said Russia was trying to weaken support for Ukraine through hybrid attacks but was failing, both on the battlefield and in its attempts to undermine allied unity.
- What did Estonia accuse Russia of?
- Estonia attributed an August fire at a drone factory to an act of Russian sabotage.
- How did Russia respond?
- Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow was acting to neutralise a "direct threat" from infrastructure used to arm Ukraine, and accused European countries of waging war on Russia.
This article was written with AI assistance from 2 verified reports and checked under the ECTV editorial policy. Spotted an error? Request a correction.