Former Dutch Prime Minister and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte emphasized that Europe should not become fully independent from the United States in defense matters, despite expectations from the Trump administration.
Rutte stated that the U.S. remains fully committed to NATO and expects Europe to take on more responsibility and increase defense spending. He highlighted the NATO summit in The Hague in June, where allies agreed to raise defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2035—a major achievement for foreign policy under President Trump.
Rutte also noted that the 23 European NATO members account for only about a quarter of the alliance’s total economic influence, with 75% coming from countries outside the EU, such as the U.S., UK, Norway, and Canada.
