Trump praises Nato leaders' ‘historic' agreement to hike defence spending

Independent

7 days ago

European leaders in Nato have agreed to a historic 5 per cent increase in defence spending and have praised Donald Trump for driving the uplift.
Nato secretary general Mark Rutte fawed over the US president and praised him for intervening in the conflict between Iran and Israel, comparing him to a 'daddy' figure stuck between the two warring Middle Eastern parties. He described Mr Trump as 'a man of strength' after he piled pressure on allies to put more money into their own defence amid the backdrop of worsening global tensions and the war in Ukraine.
The new spending pledge - which will comprise 3.5 per cent spending on core defence by 2035, and 1.5 per cent on security and resilience measures - was described by the US president as a 'monumental win' for the US, Europe and 'western civilisation'.
He said Nato allies had shown an 'unbelievable' love for their countries, conceding that the alliance is no longer a 'rip-off' for the United States after previously berating his allies for not spending enough.
'They want to protect their country and they need the United States,' he said. 'I left here differently. I left here saying that these people really love their countries, it's not a rip-off and we're here to help them protect their country'.
Praising Mr Trump for bringing about a commitment from the alliance to boost defence spending, Mr Rutte told him: 'You made this possible.'
Speaking alongside the Nato secretary general, Mr Trump had compared the fighting between Iran and Israel to children quarrelling.
"They've had a big fight, like two kids in a schoolyard. You know, they fight like hell, you can't stop them. Let them fight for about 2-3 minutes, then it's easy to stop them."
Weighing in, Mr Rutte added: "And then daddy has to sometimes use strong language to get (them to) stop."
The US president, who launched strikes on three nuclear sites in Iran last week, ahead of agreeing to a fragile ceasefire, compared the impact of the offensive to the atomic bombings of Hiroshima during World War II.
Speaking at a separate press conference in the Hague after he unveiled plans to spend 5 per cent of GDP on defence and promised to purchase 12 new fighter jets which can carry nuclear warheads, Sir Keir Starmer said the Nato summit had sent a 'decisive message to aggressors'.
He said the UK was on track to spend 4.1 per cent of GDP on defence by 2027, a figure largely boosted by spending towards the 1.5 per cent commitment.
The prime minister also insisted his position on Russia has not changed, despite Nato failing to condemn Vladimir Putin's regime in a joint statement from the alliance's chiefs.
A communique released on Wednesday after a meeting of the leaders referred to Nato's unity 'in the face of profound security threats and challenges, in particular the long-term threat posed by Russia to Euro-Atlantic security'.
It also reaffirmed support for Ukraine, but it did not explicitly condemn the Russian invasion.
Mr Trump, who met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the summit, has historically taken a softer approach towards the Russian president than other Western leaders in his fraught attempts to negotiate an end to the war. It had led to speculation that is why explicit criticism of the invasion did not feature in the communique.
But asked if the US president did not want Nato to condemn Mr Putin in the summit's concluding statement, Sir Keir said: 'The position in Nato has not changed, nor has my position changed.
'In fact, over the last couple of days, I would say my discussion, there's been a real resolve, but now is the time to push again, to get Putin to the table for the unconditional ceasefire.'
Sir Keir also insisted that Mr Trump remains a reliable ally, saying his team is "constantly" talking to the White House, as "we have done for many years".
It came as the US president said he would look at supplying Ukraine with more Patriot surface-to-air missiles, which are highly effective against Russian ballistic missiles and drones and are essential in defending critical civilian infrastructure.
' We're going to see if we can make some available, you know, they're very hard to get, we need them too. We were supplying them to Israel and they're very effective', he said.
The US president was also forced to reaffirm his commitment to the collective defence of Nato allies after pouring cold water on it at the start of the summit.
He told reporters on the flight from Washington that it would depend 'on your definition' of Article 5, when asked if he would commit to a collective defence.
But speaking the following day, he said: 'I stand with it, that's why I'm here. If I didn't stand with it, I wouldn't be here.'
It comes after the UK announced plans to provide 350 air defence missiles to Kyiv, funded by £70 million raised from the interest on seized Russian assets.
Ministers also announced that Britain will purchase at least a dozen new F35A fighter jets, reintroducing a nuclear role for the Royal Air Force for the first time since the Cold War.
It marks a major ramping up of Britain's nuclear capabilities in the face of escalating global instability and comes alongside the UK's decision to join Nato's dual-capable aircraft nuclear mission – an aircraft sharing agreement among Nato allies.
The purchase, hailed by ministers as the 'biggest strengthening of the UK's nuclear posture in a generation', comes after a major new government review warned that the UK must prepare for the possibility of a 'wartime scenario' on home soil.