On Tuesday (8 September 2026), NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte took part in a meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group, chaired by Germany and the United Kingdom.
The Secretary General welcomed new pledges of support to help Ukraine defend itself against Russia, including from air attacks. "Over the past year, Allies have allocated over 10 billion dollars to PURL and US Foreign Military Sales for Ukraine. This is crucial and to be warmly welcomed, and includes 3.5 billion dollars from the EU's Ukraine Support Loan. This is a tangible sign of EU-NATO cooperation in support of Ukraine, and also another example of Europe stepping up."
The Secretary General told the meeting of NATO Allies and partners that there was a need to support Ukraine with the "utmost urgency", as delays "cost human lives". He made clear that NATO's PURL initiative, supplying US military hardware paid for by NATO Allies and partners, continues to get critical equipment into Ukraine. "This is uninterrupted, and absolutely essential in helping Ukraine to defend its cities and to hold the front line," Mr Rutte said.
