On October 23, 2025, US President Trump met with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte at the White House on Wednesday, October 22nd. Rutte expressed his support for Trump’s decision not to provide “Tomahawk” missiles to Ukraine following their meeting.
After spending several hours at the White House meeting with Trump, Rutte told CNN in an interview, “I think the explanation the President made today is that anyone, other than the US military, would need to undergo several months of training before using the Tomahawk system, and he is absolutely right about that.”
“So, it’s not like you make a decision today and the Ukrainians can use them tomorrow,” Rutte said.
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump stated that it takes about a year to learn how to launch such a powerful weapon like the Tomahawk missile.
“The learning curve for the Tomahawk missile is very steep,” Trump said. “It’s a very powerful and highly accurate weapon, maybe that’s why it’s so complex. But it will take a year. It will take a year of intensive training to learn how to use it. We know how to use it, but we’re not going to teach others, that would be rushing things.”
While the US decided not to provide Tomahawk missiles, Ukrainian President Zelensky described his meeting with Trump as “positive.” However, he expressed concerns about whether this decision would weaken Russia’s willingness to engage in diplomatic negotiations.
Rutte stated that he and Trump agreed on the need to continue exerting economic pressure on Russia. On Wednesday, the US announced new “strong sanctions” on Russia’s two largest oil companies – Rosneft and Lukoil. This is one of the most significant actions taken by the Trump administration in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, aimed at limiting the Kremlin’s ability to fund the war.
When asked about this move, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, “I just felt the timing was right. We’ve been waiting for a long time.”
He added, “These are very strong sanctions. They are intense, targeting their two major oil companies. We hope the sanctions won’t last too long, and we hope the war will be resolved.”
Rutte mentioned, “You will see that when Putin feels threatened and things are not going in the direction he wants, he starts to react and take action.”
“All of this indicates that they are not on solid ground, the Russians and their economy are not in good shape,” Rutte added.
During the meeting, Rutte and Trump also discussed the “12-Point Peace Plan” drafted by European countries and Ukraine, a proposal aimed at ending the Russia-Ukraine war, urging increased pressure on Moscow through stricter sanctions.
Trump and Rutte’s positions aligned closely on the peace roadmap. The European plan calls for a ceasefire based on current frontline positions, which resonates with Trump’s recent proposals.
Trump expressed his hope for Russia to agree to end the war on the current front lines and then “go straight home.”
The European proposal also demands that Russia return children taken to Russia, conduct exchanges of prisoners, provide security guarantees for Ukraine, establish a post-war reconstruction fund, offer a clear path for Ukraine to join the EU, and provide additional military assistance to Kyiv.