NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte Paints Grim Picture of World, Calls for Europe and Canada to Boost Defense Spending
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte painted a bleak picture of the world, warning that the security situation is the worst in his lifetime. Speaking at a Carnegie Europe conference in Brussels, Rutte called on Europe and Canada to increase their defense spending to counter the threats posed by Russia and China.
Rutte stressed that Russia’s actions extend beyond Ukraine, and that President Vladimir Putin seeks to crush Western values and way of life. He warned that it’s time to shift to a “wartime mindset” and called on member nations to focus on defense spending.
Rutte’s remarks come as President-elect Donald Trump is set to take office. Trump has advocated for NATO members to meet the alliance’s defense spending goals, currently set at 2% of annual GDP. While Trump has not abandoned his campaign promise to negotiate a peace agreement with Russia, he has not specified what that would entail.
Only six NATO member nations met the 2% goal in 2021, but this year, NATO expects a record 23 of 32 member nations to hit the target. Poland and Estonia lead the US in the percentage of GDP spent on defense, with the US estimated to spend 3.38% of its GDP on defense.
Rutte, who took office as NATO Secretary General on October 1, has a reputation as a “Trump whisperer” due to his experience as the Dutch prime minister during Trump’s first term.