NATO chief: Alliance ready to down Russian planes if threat persists

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte has warned that the alliance stands ready to shoot down Russian aircraft if they pose a threat to member states, underscoring heightened vigilance along NATO’s eastern borders.

“In the past six weeks, three Russian planes flew over Estonian airspace, and drones have crossed into Poland. Both are NATO countries,” Rutte told Fox News. “NATO reacted exactly as we should. We have trained and prepared for this.”

He said that, while jets entering alliance airspace without a direct threat would be intercepted and escorted out, NATO forces were fully authorised to take defensive action if necessary.

The firm message came as Rutte voiced strong backing for President Donald Trump’s strategy to bring the war in Ukraine to an end. Following talks at the White House on October 22, the NATO chief said he believed the Trump administration was pursuing “the right approach” despite the recent cancellation of a planned Trump–Putin meeting.

“The meeting reaffirmed that we are able, collectively, to change the calculus of Vladimir Putin,” Rutte said on Special Report. He cited Russia’s military losses and the growing toll of Western economic pressure as signs that “the Russian leader is starting to feel the heat.”

According to Rutte, recent U.S. moves — including secondary sanctions on India and the consideration of sending long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine — have prompted the Kremlin to re-engage in dialogue.

He also pointed to deepening economic distress in Russia as a key factor in shifting Moscow’s stance. “We see long lines of cars waiting for gas from a depleted supply heavily targeted by Ukrainian attacks and strapped with sanctions,” Rutte said.

The U.S. Treasury Department recently hit Rosneft and Lukoil, Russia’s two biggest oil producers, with sanctions after Russian drone and missile attacks killed at least six people across Ukraine.

Rutte’s optimism was challenged by Fox News anchor Bret Baier, who noted that previous diplomatic contacts with Putin had often been followed by escalations. After August’s Alaska summit, Russia launched one of its most intense waves of drone and missile strikes on Ukraine.

“What do you say to critics who say that these communications with Putin let him off the hook?” Baier asked.

“We always knew this was not easy,” Rutte replied. “This will not end tomorrow or the day after tomorrow.”

The NATO chief praised Trump’s cooperation with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in tightening restrictions on Russian oil sales and said alliance unity remained strong.

Rutte also expressed confidence in Trump’s personal determination to stop the fighting. “He is really a peacemaker,” he said. “He wants to end this war. This is close to his heart.”

He added that freezing the front lines could be the first step toward peace talks between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin. “Stop where you are, and then you can still debate a lot of other things later,” Rutte said.

By Aghakazim Guliyev