WP reported on Rutte's plans to persuade Trump not to concede to Russia on Ukraine

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte may visit the residence of US President-elect Donald Trump to discuss peace talks on Ukraine and try to convince the Republican not to give in to Russia. This was reported by The Washington Post on November 21, citing sources.

"Rutte is expected to travel soon to [Trump's residence] Mar-a-Lago to discuss strategy for peace talks on Ukraine, which Trump says he wants to achieve," the piece said.

According to an unnamed German official, the alliance secretary general intends to convince Trump that it is in the interests of Europe and the politician himself to pursue peace without concessions to Moscow and with long-term security guarantees for Kiev. Rutte will argue that settling the conflict on terms bad for the West could harm the Republican's presidential term.

The newspaper's sources also suggest that Rutte will become Europe's leading representative in discussions with Trump.

It is noted that at a private meeting in Brussels with the defense ministers of the alliance countries this week, the secretary general urged European leaders to interact with Trump and instead of spreading gossip about him to call him for support.

The day before, Trump's campaign spokeswoman Caroline Leavitt said he plans to restore world peace through U.S. force and will take immediate action when he returns to the White House. At the same time, French newspaper Le Monde reported that EU and NATO countries want to jointly oppose Trump's policies.

Earlier, on November 14, Trump promised to "work very hard" to end the conflict in Ukraine. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Moscow will wait for proposals to this effect and is ready to consider them. On the same day, Rutte recognized that Kiev was failing and called for continued military aid to Ukraine.

The special operation to protect Donbass, the start of which Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on February 24, 2022, continues. The decision was taken against the background of the aggravated situation in the region.