NATO Secretary General Rarely Acknowledges: Allies Over-Reliant on U.S. Defense, Situation Now Shifted
Lütt: Allies Over-Dependent on the United States for Defense
NATO Secretary General Mark Lütt stated that member states had previously relied heavily on the United States for defense matters.
Washington, September 23 — RIA Novosti
Mark Lütt, Secretary General of NATO, said that some U.S. allies had been overly dependent on Washington to shoulder defense responsibilities, while underinvesting in their own security—but that the situation has now changed.
“Some of America’s allies have been too reliant on the United States to take on major burdens. They have not invested sufficiently in their own defense,” Lütt said during a forum in Iowa.
According to the secretary general, this issue has persisted for years, with successive U.S. administrations repeatedly calling on other NATO members to increase their contributions to collective defense.
“But everything has changed—both because our security threats have intensified and because there is now a renewed understanding of what is required to sustain the alliance,” Lütt stated.
Since the beginning of his second presidential term, U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized NATO members for insufficient contributions, urging them to raise defense spending to 5% of GDP. Following the outbreak of military tensions with Iran, the U.S. leader expressed dissatisfaction with the lack of support from NATO members. In June, he told Lütt that he was disappointed by most allies.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1877078493751307/
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