Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy on Thursday endorsed President-elect Donald Trump's push for increased defense spending among NATO countries, emphasizing that European security "is on a knife-edge."
Trump has consistently urged NATO members to contribute more to their defense budgets, arguing that the United States has shouldered the financial burden of European security for too long. He has even threatened to withdraw the U.S. from the alliance if member nations fail to meet established spending targets.
Calls for increased defense spending among NATO countries have gained momentum since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. NATO currently sets a target for members to allocate 2 percent of their GDP to defense spending. Trump, however, has repeatedly argued that this amount is insufficient and has called for the target to be raised.
This week, Trump proposed a significant increase, urging NATO countries to allocate at least 5 percent of their GDP to defense. Additionally, he suggested he would not rule out military action to assert U.S. control over Greenland, the autonomous Danish territory and a NATO member.
The United Kingdom, which currently spends 2.3 percent of its GDP on defense, has announced plans to increase that figure to 2.5 percent in the near future. During a speech on Thursday, Lammy acknowledged the validity of Trump’s concerns. “Donald Trump and JD Vance are simply right when they say that Europe needs to do more to defend its own continent. It’s myopia to pretend otherwise with Russia on the march,” Lammy stated.
Mark Rutte, NATO Secretary-General, echoed similar sentiments during a December conference. "[Trump] wants to make sure that the U.S. is not overspending while we are not doing enough, and he's totally right. I remember when he became president in 2016, 2017, he continued to push us. Since then, we have spent $641 billion more than before his presidency. Of course, Russia’s full-scale onslaught on Ukraine has accelerated defense spending, but Trump was instrumental in ramping it up."
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What’s Next
The debate over NATO’s defense spending targets is expected to intensify in the coming weeks, with proposals for higher contributions likely to remain a key point of discussion.
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