Former Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte formally took over as secretary general of NATO from Norway’s Jens Stoltenberg at a Tuesday ceremony, Paralel.Az reports citing Euronews.

Mark Rutte pledged to prioritise support for Ukraine as he took over as head of the NATO military alliance in a ceremony on Tuesday (1 October).

The alliance must “step up our support for Ukraine and bring it ever closer to NATO”, he added, after leaders of the defence pact said the country’s path to membership was “irreversible”.

When asked for his priorities, Rutte told reporters “Ukraine is at the top of the list: But also we need to do more in terms of our collective defence and deterrence.”