NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte participated in the G7 Leaders’ Summit on Tuesday, 17 June 2025, where he welcomed Canada’s renewed commitment to defence spending and held bilateral talks ahead of next month’s NATO summit in The Hague.
Hosted by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, the summit brought together leaders of the world’s major industrialised democracies, including French President Emmanuel Macron, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, who represented President Donald Trump. Also present were European Council President António Costa and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Addressing the press alongside Prime Minister Carney, Mr Rutte welcomed Canada’s announcement that it would meet NATO’s 2% of GDP defence investment target this year. “The fact that you decided to bring Canada to the 2% spending when it comes to NATO this year is really fantastic,” he said. Rutte highlighted the significance of this development, noting that with Canada and Portugal’s pledges, all NATO member states are now expected to meet the alliance’s agreed benchmark by the end of 2025.
“This is really great news,” he added, referring to the target originally set at the 2014 NATO Wales Summit, where allies committed to moving towards spending at least 2% of GDP on defence within a decade. The goal has gained renewed emphasis amid heightened global security concerns, including ongoing Russian aggression in Ukraine and increased strategic competition in the Indo-Pacific.
Canada’s announcement marks a significant policy shift. The country had previously been criticised within the alliance for its reluctance to meet the 2% target. The new commitment, unveiled by Prime Minister Carney in one of his first major international appearances since taking office earlier this year, is likely to be well-received by Washington and other NATO capitals. It also positions Canada as a more active contributor to NATO’s collective deterrence posture at a time of elevated transatlantic focus on defence readiness and burden sharing.
In parallel with summit discussions, Mr Rutte held a series of bilateral meetings, including with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The talks are understood to have focused on continued NATO support for Ukraine amid Russia’s ongoing full-scale invasion. The meeting comes as Kyiv seeks additional long-term security commitments from NATO members, including expanded training, intelligence sharing, and air defence systems.
The Secretary General also met with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. While Australia is not a NATO member, it is one of the alliance’s key Indo-Pacific partners and participates regularly in NATO dialogues on strategic challenges in the region. The conversation reportedly touched on NATO’s increasing engagement with Indo-Pacific democracies in response to shifting geopolitical dynamics and the growing influence of China.
This year’s G7 summit agenda was dominated by international security, economic resilience, and global infrastructure investment. Against the backdrop of continued instability in Eastern Europe, leaders reiterated their support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and signalled their intention to sustain military and economic assistance to Kyiv. The summit also included discussions on technological innovation, global supply chains, and cooperation on climate mitigation.
Mr Rutte’s presence at the summit reflects NATO’s evolving role in addressing a broader array of security challenges that extend beyond the North Atlantic. As the alliance prepares for its next summit in The Hague later in June, the Secretary General is expected to push for greater integration of national defence planning, increased investment in innovation and resilience, and closer cooperation with non-member partners.
Preparations for the NATO Summit in The Hague are underway, with the Dutch government expected to host leaders from all 32 NATO member states. Key topics at the upcoming summit will include the operational implementation of the enhanced defence plans agreed at the 2024 Washington Summit, which aim to reinforce NATO’s collective deterrence and rapid response capabilities. These plans involve updated force posture arrangements, expanded multinational battlegroups, pre-positioning of equipment, and integrated command structures designed to respond to multiple simultaneous threats. Particular attention will be given to bolstering NATO’s eastern flank, especially in the Baltic and Black Sea regions, where member states remain exposed to potential Russian military activity. Leaders are also expected to address NATO’s long-term strategic posture towards both Russia and China, including efforts to counter hybrid threats, disinformation campaigns, and critical infrastructure vulnerabilities, while strengthening ties with like-minded partners in the Indo-Pacific.
As the alliance marks 76 years since its founding, the G7 meeting served as an opportunity for NATO’s leadership to coordinate closely with major global partners. The affirmation of Canada’s commitment to the 2% spending benchmark removes one of the more prominent gaps in NATO’s financial pledge alignment and is likely to be a central talking point in The Hague.
The 2025 NATO Summit is set to take place on 24–25 June in The Hague.
