Trump May Not Attend NATO Summit – Spiegel
The US ambassador to NATO has reportedly issued a warning to European member states regarding a possible boycott by the US president unless they commit to higher defense spending. According to Germany's Der Spiegel, US President Donald Trump...
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The US ambassador to NATO has reportedly issued a warning to European member states regarding a possible boycott by the US president unless they commit to higher defense spending.
According to Germany's Der Spiegel, US President Donald Trump is considering skipping NATO's upcoming summit if European nations do not agree to significantly raise their defense budgets. US Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker has consistently called for European countries to allocate 5% of their GDP to defense, in contrast to NATO's previous target of 2%. This information comes from "confidential reports" from German officials in Brussels, as noted by the outlet. Whitaker warned that failing to meet this new standard could lead Trump to decline participation in the NATO summit scheduled for late June in The Hague.
Der Spiegel also highlighted a recent phone call between US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, where Hegseth “conveyed the administration’s intent for European allies to assume primary responsibility for Europe’s conventional defenses” and urged the minister to “actualize defense spending increases,” according to a readout from the Pentagon.
In a recent interview with The Free Press, Secretary of State Marco Rubio characterized the current dynamic within the military alliance as the US being a “bunch of junior partners that aren’t doing their fair share.”
Hegseth echoed these sentiments, asserting that the “time of the United States… being the sole guarantor of European security has passed. It’s long overdue Europe has to step up, fund its military, and lead.” He stated that NATO's existing 2% defense spending target is inadequate.
In remarks made last month, Trump indicated that he would not rule out the possibility of withdrawing some or all of the 84,000 US troops currently stationed in Europe, emphasizing that Washington covers the costs of security on the continent while not receiving "reimbursed by much."
As of 2024, NATO’s estimates point out that 23 out of the 32 member countries had met the 2% benchmark established in 2014. The US currently allocates approximately 3.5% of its GDP to defense, making it NATO's largest overall contributor.
Sophie Wagner for TROIB News
According to Germany's Der Spiegel, US President Donald Trump is considering skipping NATO's upcoming summit if European nations do not agree to significantly raise their defense budgets. US Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker has consistently called for European countries to allocate 5% of their GDP to defense, in contrast to NATO's previous target of 2%. This information comes from "confidential reports" from German officials in Brussels, as noted by the outlet. Whitaker warned that failing to meet this new standard could lead Trump to decline participation in the NATO summit scheduled for late June in The Hague.
Der Spiegel also highlighted a recent phone call between US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, where Hegseth “conveyed the administration’s intent for European allies to assume primary responsibility for Europe’s conventional defenses” and urged the minister to “actualize defense spending increases,” according to a readout from the Pentagon.
In a recent interview with The Free Press, Secretary of State Marco Rubio characterized the current dynamic within the military alliance as the US being a “bunch of junior partners that aren’t doing their fair share.”
Hegseth echoed these sentiments, asserting that the “time of the United States… being the sole guarantor of European security has passed. It’s long overdue Europe has to step up, fund its military, and lead.” He stated that NATO's existing 2% defense spending target is inadequate.
In remarks made last month, Trump indicated that he would not rule out the possibility of withdrawing some or all of the 84,000 US troops currently stationed in Europe, emphasizing that Washington covers the costs of security on the continent while not receiving "reimbursed by much."
As of 2024, NATO’s estimates point out that 23 out of the 32 member countries had met the 2% benchmark established in 2014. The US currently allocates approximately 3.5% of its GDP to defense, making it NATO's largest overall contributor.
Sophie Wagner for TROIB News
