US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has warned that if the war in Ukraine continues with no short-term path to peace, the United States and its allies will "take the steps necessary to impose costs on Russia."
Speaking at the Ukraine Defence Contact Group convened by the United Kingdom and Germany at NATO Headquarters in Brussels on Wednesday, Hegseth urged an immediate push for negotiations.
"If this war does not end, if there is no path to peace in the short term, then the United States, along with our allies, will take the steps necessary to impose costs on Russia for its continued aggression," he warned.
"If we must take this step, the US War Department stands ready to do our part in ways that only the United States can do," he added.
He emphasised that the war in Ukraine will end under President Donald Trump's leadership, saying, "President Trump knows how to forge peace, to create opportunities in situations, in scenarios where peace seems far off. This is not a war that started on President Trump's watch, but it will end on his watch."
Defence spending
Hegseth said European countries have increased defence investment for Ukraine in recent months, but must continue to assume primary responsibility for the conventional defence of the continent.
"Now, of course, the United States will do its part, but Europeans must continue to take primary responsibility for the conventional defence of the continent," he said.
He hailed the allied commitment on the Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) initiative and called on all NATO members to avoid "free riders".
"All countries need to translate goals into guns, commitments into capabilities, and pledges into power. That's all that matters. Hard power, it's the only thing belligerents actually respect," he said.
NATO introduced the PURL initiative in July after US President Donald Trump briefly suspended military aid to Ukraine, accusing allies of failing to share the burden.
Under the programme, the US provides weapons to Ukraine while Western allies cover the costs. By August, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Latvia, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden had allocated a total of $2.2 billion for the programme.
