Brussels, Jan. 27 (SANA) NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said on Monday that Europe cannot guarantee its own defence without support from the United States.
Addressing members of the European Parliament in Brussels, Rutte dismissed recent calls for European strategic self-reliance as unrealistic. He described the idea of Europe defending itself independently as a “dream.”
Rutte argued that building a truly autonomous defence capability would require Europe to roughly double its defence spending, far beyond NATO’s agreed target, to around 10% of GDP. He added that this would likely involve costly investments in an independent nuclear deterrent.
He stressed that such a shift would not replace the security guarantee provided by the U.S. nuclear umbrella.
Rutte also responded to proposals from EU Defence Commissioner Andrius Kubilius earlier this month to create a joint European military force that could eventually replace U.S. troops in Europe. He dismissed the idea as impractical and warned it could undermine collective security.
On the issue of Greenland, where remarks by former U.S. President Donald Trump sparked tensions with the EU, Rutte said NATO would take on a greater role in Arctic security. He added, however, that any negotiations regarding the U.S. presence on the island should be handled by Danish and Greenlandic authorities.
Founded in 1949 and based in Brussels, NATO comprises 32 member countries committed to collective defence under Article 5 of the Washington Treaty, which states that an attack on one ally is considered an attack on all.
R.H
