NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte says a US peace proposal has helped bring Kyiv and Washington closer together on the way toward ending the war between Russia and Ukraine, Europe's biggest and deadliest conflict since World War II.

NATO nations pledged in June to raise “core” defense spending to 3.5 percent of their GDP, which would be funneled into buying new military equipment and other capabilities. Another 1.5 percent would be earmarked for defense-related spending, such as infrastructure the armed forces may need to use.

Business Insider observed US, Polish, and Romanian forces learning to use the Merops system, which has been combat-proven in Ukraine.

While the U.S. has taken part in previous iterations of the military exercise, this year's U.S. footprint was smaller as allied nations are pressed by the Trump administration to put more into European defense.

President Donald Trump designated Saudi Arabia as a Major Non- NATO Ally (MNNA) of the United States during a high-stake visit by Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman to Washington D.C. last week, making the kingdom the 20th country to hold the status, a powerful symbol of close relations.

Ukraine and its European allies will insist that discussions with Russia on any territorial swaps can only take place once the war ceases along the current line of contact, according to people familiar with a counter-proposal that will be presented to the US later today in Switzerland.

The U.S. NATO envoy supports a German general taking command of all allied forces, a job that has been held by an American officer.

A spokesperson for Poland's special services minister accused Russian intelligence Tuesday of orchestrating a railway blast that destroyed a key track on a route used to deliver aid to Ukraine. Jacek Dobrzyński told reporters that "everything indicates" Russian intelligence was behind the sabotage of Polish railways.

A thunderous explosion shattered the quiet of the Polish countryside one night, targeting the Warsaw-Lublin rail corridor—a lifeline for aid to Ukraine. The attack, executed with military-grade C-4 explosives and a 300-meter cable,