NATO commits to higher spending sought by Trump and mutual defence

On Wednesday, NATO leaders endorsed a significant increase in defense spending, responding to demands made by U.S. President Donald Trump, and reaffirmed their pledge to protect one another from attacks.

Although Trump achieved his goal at the short summit, which seemed tailored for him, NATO allies were reassured by his clear commitment to the core principle of collective defense—something that had been less certain in earlier remarks on Tuesday.

In a five-point statement, NATO set a new defense spending target of 5% of GDP by 2035. This move addressed both Trump’s demands and European concerns about Russia’s growing threat following its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

The joint statement from the 32 allies emphasized: “We reaffirm our ironclad commitment to collective defense as outlined in Article 5 of the Washington Treaty—that an attack on one ally is an attack on all.”

When asked to clarify his position on Article 5, Trump responded, “I stand with it. That’s why I’m here. If I didn’t stand with it, I wouldn’t be here.”

MACRON RAISES TRADE WAR CONCERNS AT NATO SUMMIT

Trump has long insisted that other NATO members increase their defense budgets to reduce the alliance’s heavy reliance on U.S. funding.

However, French President Emmanuel Macron brought up the issue of Trump’s threatened steep import tariffs, warning that such trade conflicts could hinder efforts to boost defense spending.

“You cannot come to us as allies and ask us to spend more on NATO—and then wage a trade war. That’s absurd,” Macron told reporters.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who hosted the summit in The Hague, said the alliance would become “stronger, fairer, and more capable.”

Acknowledging that raising funds is challenging for European countries and Canada, Rutte stressed the necessity of doing so, citing the ongoing Russian threat and current international security concerns.

The new spending target, to be reached over the next decade, marks a substantial increase from the existing 2% of GDP goal and amounts to hundreds of billions of additional dollars annually, though the way spending is calculated will change.

Under the new framework, countries would allocate 3.5% of GDP to core defense activities such as troops and weaponry, and 1.5% to broader defense-related areas like cybersecurity, infrastructure protection, and adapting transport routes for military use.

While all NATO members agreed to the new target, Spain stated it does not intend to meet the 5% goal, claiming it can fulfill its obligations with lower spending.

Rutte disagreed but accepted a diplomatic compromise with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to maintain harmony and give Trump a symbolic win at the summit.

Spain said its position would not cause any fallout.

TRUMP MEETS ZELENSKIY AFTER THE SUMMIT

To avoid tensions with Trump, Rutte kept the summit and its closing statement brief, focusing on the spending pledge.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy attended only the pre-summit dinner on Tuesday and not the main session on Wednesday, although he met Trump privately afterward.

Meanwhile, the Kremlin criticized NATO on Tuesday, accusing it of aggressive militarization and demonizing Russia to justify the alliance’s increased defense budgets.