NATO chief urges European allies to ramp up defense spending as Trump returns to White House

Associated Press

BRUSSELS (AP) — NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte is leading a fresh push for European countries to ramp up defense spending. It’s a shortcoming that President-elect Donald Trump used to berate U.S. allies during his first term in office, severely damaging trust. Since Russia launched its full-fledged invasion almost three years ago, NATO’s 32 countries have agreed that they should spend a minimum of 2% of GDP on their military budgets. On average, U.S. allies combined meet that figure, but around a third of the members still do not individually. Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, threatened not to defend “delinquent” countries. Rutte said Wednesday that if NATO wants to deter Russia in the future “2% is not enough.”