NATO Chief underscores US role in Europe's defense against Russia threat
Photo: Mark Rutte, NATO Secretary General (Getty Images)
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte confirmed, while speaking to the press ahead of the Alliance summit, that the United States’ commitment to Article 5 of the Alliance and emphasized the importance of equality in defense spending.
He called on Canada and European countries to accelerate funding to effectively counter Russian aggression.
"For me, there is absolute clarity that the United States is totally committed to NATO, totally committed to Article 5, and yes, there is also an expectation, which will be fulfilled today, that the Canadians and the Europeans will speed up their spending, making sure that we not only are able to defend ourselves against the Russians and others, but also to equalize, and this is fair, that we spend the same as the US is spending," he said.
Rutte also emphasized that the foundation of Article 5 is mutual defense of allies, regardless of the form of attack, whether it is a cyberattack or a hybrid attack.
He noted that details should not cast doubt on NATO’s readiness to defend each member.
"The big thing about Article 5 and the good thing about Article 5 is that it is clear that we defend each other when we are attacked. But you will always get all these questions you ask, but if this cyber attack or this hybrid attack, we never go into those details," Rutte stressed.
The UK will reach NATO’s new goal of spending 5% of GDP on national security by 2035.
It is expected that at the NATO summit in the Netherlands, 32 member countries, including the United Kingdom, will agree to the goal of 5%, with 3.5% to go toward core defense and the remaining 1.5% toward defense-related areas.
