FT: Rutte to press European arms makers to ramp up production Ahead of NATO summit

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte is set to urge Europe’s leading defence companies next week to accelerate investment and expand production capacity, as the alliance seeks to strengthen its military readiness and address pressure from the United States.

Rutte will meet senior executives from major European defence firms in Brussels, according to people familiar with the matter. The discussions are intended to encourage faster industrial scaling and to prepare groundwork for announcements expected at NATO’s annual summit in Ankara in July, Financial Times reports. 

Ahead of the meeting, companies have been asked to provide details on planned investments and their ability to increase output, particularly in critical areas such as air defence systems and long-range missile production.

The gathering is seen as unusual within industry circles, as Rutte typically holds bilateral discussions rather than convening a broad group of defence executives at once. Participants are expected to include representatives from major firms such as Rheinmetall, Safran, Airbus, Saab, MBDA and Leonardo.

Officials said the NATO chief’s message reflects growing urgency within the alliance to demonstrate tangible industrial expansion at the leaders’ summit in Türkiye. He is expected to push companies to move ahead with investment decisions even in the absence of large-scale new government procurement contracts.

By Sabina Mammadli