In an interview with Euronews, former NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen called on Germany to provide Kyiv with its Taurus missiles and urged allies to increase military aid to bolster Ukraine’s defence capabilities.
Anders Fogh Rasmussen, ex-NATO Secretary General, stated in an Euronews interview that Germany ought to supply Ukraine with long-range Taurus missiles, and that NATO partners should expand arms shipments to help Ukrainians defend against Russian missile and drone attacks.
Having led NATO from 2010 to 2014 after his tenure as Denmark’s prime minister, Rasmussen emphasized the need for NATO allies to intensify pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to push him toward peace talks, though currently Putin lacks incentives to negotiate.
«President Putin has absolutely no reason to participate constructively in peace negotiations as long as he believes victory on the battlefield is achievable,» Rasmussen told Euronews.
«Therefore, altering his calculations requires significantly more support for Ukraine and increased pressure,» he added.
The German-produced Taurus missile is a sophisticated, long-range cruise missile capable of reaching targets 500 km away, which is double the range of Kyiv’s existing cruise missile inventory, enabling deep strikes within Russian territory.
While German Chancellor Friedrich Merz expressed openness in April to supplying Ukraine with Taurus missiles, no delivery has occurred yet.
The former coalition government under Olaf Scholz refrained from sending the missile to Ukraine, concerned that strikes inside Russia might escalate the conflict.
Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022, the Kremlin’s war of attrition has relied heavily on artillery, drones, and missile assaults targeting Ukrainian urban areas and civilian sites rather than advancing rapidly on the ground.
Following US President Donald Trump’s inauguration for his second, non-consecutive term in January, he publicly expressed a desire to end the war in Ukraine and initiated direct dialogues with Putin.
Rasmussen highlighted a strategic shift in Washington since January.
«The US may have become less predictable. I was critical of the lavish welcome President Putin received in Alaska when he met with President Trump,» he noted.
Nonetheless, Rasmussen viewed the recent US sanctions against two major Russian oil firms as a favorable development.
«It appears that President Trump has gradually grown impatient with Putin. I think the US increasingly recognizes that to compel Putin into peace negotiations, it must apply much stronger pressure on Russia,» the former NATO chief commented.
Regarding arms support to Ukraine, Trump remains cautious; on Sunday, he informed reporters that the US will not sell Tomahawk missiles to Kyiv.
The US-made Tomahawk missile, with even greater range than the Taurus, has been described by Ukrainian officials as a «game changer.»
Video editor • Amandine Hess
Additional sources • Footage by Frederic Garcon