BRUSSELS: In response to calls for the region to stand on its own two feet following tensions over Greenland, NATO leader Mark Rutte cautioned on Monday that Europe cannot defend itself without the United States.
After speaking with Rutte last week, US President Donald Trump withdrew his threat to annex the independent Danish territory, which caused a stir in the transatlantic relationship. Those calling for Europe to adopt a more assertive stance against Trump and abandon its military dependence on Washington gained new impetus as a result of the diplomatic crisis.
Anyone who believes that the European Union or all of Europe can protect itself without the United States should continue to dream. Rutte warned members of the European Parliament, “You can’t.
He claimed that EU nations would have to spend “billions and billions” on developing nuclear weapons and double defense expenditure from the five percent NATO target set last year to ten percent. You would lose the US nuclear umbrella, which is the ultimate guarantee of our freedom,” Rutte declared. “Hey, good luck.”
The previous prime minister of the Netherlands maintained that although the US expected European nations to continue increasing their military budget, the US commitment to NATO’s Article Five mutual defense guarantee remained “total.” They require both a secure Europe and a secure Euro-Atlantic. Thus, the United States has a strong interest in NATO,” he stated.
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