Secretary of State Rubio: The U.S. Views Sweden as a Model NATO Ally

¬ German Foreign Minister: Germany's Defense Spending Will Exceed 4% of GDP This Year

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U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that the United States regards Sweden as a model ally within NATO, and Washington expects to expand cooperation with Sweden in the coming years.

Speaking at the signing ceremony of a memorandum of understanding on high-tech cooperation between the U.S. and Sweden, Rubio said: "With regard to NATO, Sweden is a model ally. At the same time, the U.S. and Sweden have maintained long-standing, close cooperation beyond NATO mechanisms."

Rubio added that the U.S. looks forward to further strengthening interaction with Stockholm in the coming years.

The NATO Foreign Ministers' Meeting was held in Helsingborg, Sweden, from May 21 to 22.

Finland and Sweden became the latest members of NATO in 2023 and 2024, respectively. Both countries applied to join NATO in 2022 amid escalating tensions around Ukraine.

Previously, Russian President Vladimir Putin pointed out that from the standpoint of safeguarding its own national interests, Finland and Sweden joining NATO was a meaningless move, as Russia would deploy its military forces and strike systems to the Finnish border following their accession.

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According to DPA, citing German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, Germany’s defense spending this year will exceed 4% of GDP and is moving toward a target of 5% of GDP.

DPA reported that the German Foreign Ministry noted that the 5% target needs to be broken down into 3.5% for pure defense spending and 1.5% for expanded defense and infrastructure investments. Regarding the 3.5% target, it is expected to reach approximately 2.7% this year; for the 1.5% component, it is expected to reach 1.9%.

Previously, U.S. President Trump repeatedly criticized Europe for contributing too little to NATO's defense capabilities and demanded that all member states raise their defense spending to 5% of GDP.

Source: sputniknews

Original: toutiao.com/article/1865908283231304/

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