RT.com
07 Mar 2025, 02:13 GMT+10
The US may choose to defend only those member states that meet the bloc's defense spending targets, the media outlet claims
The US could decide to only defend those NATO countries that actually meet the bloc's spending requirements, four former and current officials have told NBC.
Such a policy would mark a major departure from a core article of the military bloc, which states that an attack on any NATO member is to be treated as an attack on all of them.
A similar principle would apply to joint military exercises and American overseas deployments, the report said. Washington could choose to prioritize drills with those NATO partners that meet the defense spending targets and also reposition its forces in Europe according to the same criteria.
The administration of President Donald Trump has previously signaled that it was planning to reduce its military presence in Europe. The president also recently urged the EU to take the lead in its own defense and to bear the brunt of any future security guarantees for Kiev.
Last month, Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said that Washington intended to refocus its military priorities on countering China. He also warned the EU nations that they should not assume the presence of US troops on the continent will be indefinite.
Some senior US officials contacted by NBC denied that the mutual defense clause - Article 5 - could be affected by any policy changes. Senator Chris Coons, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee for Defense, said that Trump's nominee for the NATO ambassador's position, Matthew Whitaker, "gave very reassuring answers" on the administration's commitments to Article 5.
Trump has repeatedly criticized NATO members that fail to meet the bloc's current defense spending threshold of 2% of GDP. The president floated the idea of raising mandatory defense spending by members to 5% of GDP, though none - including the US - currently meet that threshold. According to NATO estimates, 23 bloc members met the 2% threshold as of 2024, with just five, including the US, coming in above 3%. Poland was the only member to spend more than 4% of GDP on defense.
Get a daily dose of Kenya Star news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Kenya Star.
More InformationSpeaking in London, Indian foreign minister S. Jaishankar has said the groups members have very diverse positions on de-dollarization...
Colombo [Sri Lanka], March 6 (ANI): Team India will be playing a tri-nation series in Sri Lanka, also featuring South Africa from April...
Zena Ayubu Saidi, a second-year student at the University of Dar es Salaam, speaks during an interview with Xinhua in Dar es Salaam,...
AMSTERDAM/DUBAI, UAE — Sudan has filed a case against the United Arab Emirates at the World Court for allegedly arming the paramilitary...
Some in Washington see Moscow as a junior partner to be drawn away from Beijings orbit and into its own Western experts often speak...
Some in Washington see Moscow as a junior partner to be drawn away from Beijings orbit and into its own Western experts often speak...
New Delhi [India], March 7 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a veiled attack on Congress on Thursday, saying that Naxalism is...
Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], March 7 (ANI): BJP leader Sunil Sharma on Thursday slammed Chief Minister Omar Abdullah over...
Washington DC [US], March 6 (ANI): US President Donald Trump said that he had a telephonic conversation with President Claudia Sheinbaum...
Brussels [Belgium], March 6 (ANI): Belgium's Prime Minister, Bart De Wever on Thursday assured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy...
The US may choose to defend only those member states that meet the bloc's defense spending targets, the media outlet claims ...
New Delhi [India], March 6 (ANI): Legendary Indian footballer Sunil Chhetri has come out of retirement from international football...