NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on Monday urged the European allies to make a "quantum leap" in military spending to deter Russia, which affirms Trump's own longtime message, as the NATO chief called for a whopping 400% increase in the Continent’s air and missile defense budget.
"The fact is, we need a quantum leap in our collective defense," Rutte said before an audience of the London-based think tank Chatham House. "The fact is, we must have more forces and capabilities to implement our defense plans in full. The fact is, danger will not disappear even when the war in Ukraine ends."
The comments came days after he stated provocatively that Europe must invest heavily in defense now, or learn Russian later.
"If we don't act now, the next three years, we are fine, but we have to start now, because otherwise, from three, four or five years from now, we are really under threat," he had said. "I really mean this. Then you have to get your Russian language course out, or go to New Zealand."
NATO defense ministers are further expected to soon formalize the following increase in spending policies:
- They’ve agreed that 3.5% of GDP would be used for "core defence spending" - such as heavy weapons, tanks, air defence.
- 1.5% of GDP per year will be spent on defense- and security-related areas such as infrastructure, surveillance, and cyber. However, the full list of flexibility has not yet been negotiated.
- "These targets describe exactly what capabilities Allies need to invest in over the coming years," Rutte told journalists.
"The threats facing NATO are growing and our adversaries are certainly not waiting for us to re-arm or be ready for them to make the first move," Rutte has also said. "We would prefer our allies move out urgently on reaching the 5%."
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