NATO Chief Rutte to call for 'quantum leap' in defence spending

Euronews

5 hours ago

NATO Chief Mark Rutte will tell members that a "quantum leap" in collective security is necessary as he meets UK leader Keir Starmer in London on Monday.
The secretary-general of the military alliance is expected to renew calls for member states to swiftly boost defence spending in response to mounting global threats, particularly from Russia
A "400% increase in air and missile defences" and thousands more armoured vehicles and shells are needed to maintain deterrence and defence, according to excerpts of Rutte's speech released by NATO.
"We see in Ukraine how Russia delivers terror from above, so we will strengthen the shield that protects our skies" Rutte is expected to say.
Rutte will meet Starmer at Downing Street ahead of a NATO summit in the Netherlands where the alliance's 32 member countries are expected to commit to a huge hike in military spending.
The alliance's leader has proposed a target of 3.5% of each countries GDP on military spending and another 1.5% on "defence-related expenditure" such as bridges, airfields, sea ports and roads.
Rutte's proposed new target would deliver on longstanding demands made by US President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly criticised the alliance's 2% goal as inadequate.
NATO's current target, agreed at a summit in 2014, is 2% of GDP. Currently, 22 of the 32 member countries meet or exceed the current target. Only Poland exceeds the 3.5% target at 4.32%. The US defence budget, the largest in the alliance, amounts to 3.4% of its GDP.
A majority of NATO member countries have recently signalled plans to bolster their defence capabilities in response to Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine and mounting pressure from US President Donald Trump for European allies to take greater responsibility for their own security.
In the UK, Starmer has pledged to hike the country's defence spending to 2.5% of its GDP, and an additional 3% by 2034.
Last week, the UK government unveiled a plan to build 12 new attack submarines and six ammunition factories, marking the most sweeping overhaul of British defences in more than three decades.
Germany has also pledged a substantial increase in military spending for 2025.
Its parliament recently approved a constitutional amendment exempting defence spending exceeding 1% of GDP from the country's debt-brake, a move enabling significantly more investment from a nation historically hesitant to be a leader in European military spending.
A total of 27 were arrested in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday as thousands of protesters took to the streets in response to US President Donald Trump's ICE raids and deployment of National Guard troops.
At least 10 people were detained during scuffles between police officers and demonstrators in downtown Los Angeles, LAPD Police Chief Jim McDonnell said during a news conference Sunday evening local time.
Decrying the escalation of violence as "disgusting", McDonnell said Molotov cocktails, fireworks, rocks and other objects were being used to target officers.
"It's escalated now since the beginning of this incident," McDonnell said, calling the protests "increasingly worse and more violent."
Another 17 were arrested by the California Highway Patrol, clearing protesters from busy highways.
Separately, around 60 people were detained on Sunday in the city of San Francisco following a protest outside the Immigration Services building that turned violent.
Hundreds had gathered outside the building to rally against the agency's raids and deportations across California as ordered by the Trump administration.
The initially peaceful protest escalated into a tense standoff with San Francisco police officers wearing riot gear, according to local media reports.
Another 29 people were also apprehended on Saturday, adding to the tally of 56 arrested in Los Angeles over the weekend in connection with the protests.
Sunday's skirmishes in Los Angeles were sparked by protests that began on Friday after it emerged Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers were carrying out raids across the city in predominantly Hispanic neighbourhoods.
Trump has ramped up immigration raids during his tenure, asking federal agents last month to arrest 3,000 people a day. Under his directive, ICE officials are allowed to locate, detain and deport illegal immigrants living in the US.
Tensions escalated and protests became increasingly violent as demonstrators took to the streets in response to the deployment of some 300 National Guard soldiers, blocking off a major freeway and setting fire to self-driving cars. Police officers used tear gas, rubber bullets and flash bangs to try to quell the unrest.
California Governor Gavin Newsom has requested Trump remove the guard troops in a letter Sunday afternoon, calling their deployment a "serious breach of state sovereignty.'
His comments were echoed by Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, who said the escalation of violence on Sunday was "provoked" by the Trump administration's use of National Guard troops, who are typically deployed in exceptional circumstances.
In response, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said it is a "bald-faced lie for Newsom to claim there was no problem in Los Angeles before President Trump got involved."
Trump himself has insisted the troops are necessary and demanded that additional Marine units be deployed to the area in response to the unrest.
"Looking really bad in LA. Bring in the troops," the US president posted on his Truth Social platform on Sunday.
About 500 Marines are stationed at Twentynine Palms, close to Los Angeles, where they were in a 'prepared to deploy status' Sunday afternoon, according to the US Northern Command.