“When asked whether Europe would be able to support Ukraine without the participation of the United States, Rutte answered that a probable victory would make Russia a threat to the United States as well.”, — write: www.radiosvoboda.org
Rutte recalled that the administration of the United States during Trump’s first presidency called on NATO countries to spend at least 2 percent of their gross domestic product on defense.
“Now, thanks to him (To Trump – ed.)NATO countries, if we take away the US indicators for a moment, have an indicator of more than 2%. This is entirely his achievement. And we know that we have to do more,” said the NATO Secretary General.
He noted that he is waiting for an opportunity to discuss with Trump a joint response to the latest challenges that have arisen due to Russia’s cooperation with North Korea.
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When asked whether Europe would be able to support Ukraine without the participation of the United States, Rutte answered that a probable victory over Ukraine would make Russia a threat not only to Europe, but also to the United States:
“We will have an emboldened Russia on our borders, which will gain the defense potential of Ukraine, as well as the ingenuity of Ukrainians. And this will be a threat not only to Europe, but also to the USA. Therefore, we must work together not only on threats from Russia, but also on the four countries (Russia, Iran, North Korea, China – ed.)which work together. We will soon see that the US is also under attack because Russia is providing its latest technology to North Korea.”
During Trump’s presidency from 2016 to 2020, Washington urged allied countries to increase efforts to fulfill their financial obligations within the framework of NATO, in particular by bringing defense spending to NATO’s norms of at least 2 percent of gross domestic product. Over the past years, many of the NATO member countries have reduced these costs to much lower levels.