European Council President Donald Tusk told U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday to stop berating NATO allies over military investment levels, on the eve of an alliance summit.
An investment
"I think you can have no doubt Mr President (U.S. President Donald Trump) that this is an investment in common American and European defence and security which can't be said with confidence about Russian or Chinese spending," Donald Tusk, a former Polish premier said after a signing statement on cooperation between the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. I would therefore have two remarks here. First of all: Dear America, appreciate your allies, after all you don't have that many, and dear Europe, spend more on your defence because everyone respects an ally that is well prepared and equipped," Mr Tusk added.
Dear @realDonaldTrump. US doesn’t have and won’t have a better ally than EU. We spend on defense much more than Russia and as much as China. I hope you have no doubt this is an investment in our security, which cannot be said with confidence about Russian & Chinese spending :-)
— Donald Tusk (@eucopresident) 10 lipca 2018
The agreement signed between NATO, the European Council and the European Commission aims at strengthening security and military cooperation between the parties.
Deeper cooperation
"This new declaration demonstrates our desire to deepen and broaden our cooperation, facing a complex and uncertain security environment we must work together to keep our nations and our citizens safe, and that is exactly what we are doing," said the Secretary General of the NATO, Jens Stoltenberg.
"In the months ahead, we will step up our cooperation on military mobility which is essential to our deterrence and defence. We will also work together to respond to hybrid threats and to counter terrorism," added NATO Chief Jens Stoltenberg.
Leaders of NATO countries will meet at a summit tomorrow in Brussels, with a key issue being spending on defence by countries in the alliance other than the U.S.
Harsh critic
U.S. President Donald Trump has indicated what his message will be at the two-day meeting from Wednesday: other governments must dramatically step up military spending and lower import tariffs. Trump has been a harsh critic of NATO since the 2016 presidential campaign.
Getting ready to leave for Europe. First meeting - NATO. The U.S. is spending many times more than any other country in order to protect them. Not fair to the U.S. taxpayer. On top of that we lose $151 Billion on Trade with the European Union. Charge us big Tariffs (& Barriers)!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) 10 lipca 2018
After taking office, he affirmed the U.S. commitment to the defence of NATO allies but kept up complaints about Washington's shouldering the financial burden.
Trump has demanded allies dedicate 2 percent of national economic output on defence every year and has sought to keep up the pressure by calling that target a "bare minimum." After leaving the NATO meeting, Trump will visit the United Kingdom and will hold a one-on-one meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on July 16 in Helsinki.
NATO countries must pay MORE, the United States must pay LESS. Very Unfair!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) 10 lipca 2018
In response to Russia's 2014 annexation of Ukraine's Crimea peninsula, NATO has put troops on rotation in the Baltic states and Poland, strengthened its presence in the Black Sea and sought to modernise its forces.
Autor: gf / Źródło: TVN24 International, Reuters, OLIVIER HOSLET/POOL/PAP/EPA
Źródło zdjęcia głównego: OLIVIER HOSLET/POOL/PAP/EPA