NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte bluntly warned European lawmakers on Monday, January 26, that the continent cannot defend itself without the United States. He stated, “If anyone still thinks here that the European Union, or Europe as a whole, can defend itself without the United States, keep dreaming. You can’t. We can’t. We need each other.”
Au sein de l’OTAN, les Européens réfléchissent aux moyens de réduire leur dépendance vis-à-vis des Etats-Unis
Rutte explained that building a new defensive alliance without the U.S. would require European nations to dedicate not 5 percent, but 10 percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) to defense. This would also necessitate developing an independent nuclear deterrent. “That costs billions and billions of euros. And in that scenario, you would lose the ultimate guarantor of our freedom, namely the American nuclear umbrella. So, good luck!” he told members of the European Parliament during a question-and-answer session.
The thirty-two member nations of NATO have committed to spending at least 5 percent of their GDP on security by 2035, with 3.5 percent earmarked for military investment. This is already a substantial undertaking for many, as only a few had reached the previously agreed-upon target of 2 percent of GDP by the end of 2025.
“Europeans Can and Must Take Charge of Their Security”
U.S. President Donald Trump and his Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, have repeatedly warned European allies that they must increasingly rely on their own forces for security. European nations have since sought to strengthen the European pillar within NATO, particularly by developing their own defense industry.
“No, dear Mark Rutte. Europeans can and must take charge of their security. Even the United States agrees. It’s the European pillar of NATO,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot responded to Rutte on X, Monday evening, as France is among the countries most in favor of this “strategic autonomy” in Europe. However, other European capitals, particularly those geographically close to Russia, are more cautious due to their reliance on American weapons systems.
“I know that America greatly appreciates all these efforts,” Mark Rutte said, reiterating to European lawmakers on Monday that he had emphasized to Donald Trump the price paid in Afghanistan by U.S. allies within NATO, after the U.S. president sparked outrage by downplaying their contribution. “For every two American soldiers who paid the ultimate price, one soldier from an allied or partner country did not go home,” he stated.
