NATO chief Rutte calls for 400% increase in the alliance's air and missile defense
NATO members need to increase their air and missile defenses by 400% to counter the threat from Russia, the head of the military alliance plans to say on Monday.
Secretary-General Mark Rutte will say during a visit to London that NATO must take a 'quantum leap in our collective defense' to face growing instability and threats, according to extracts released by NATO before Rutte's speech.
Rutte is due to meet U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer at 10 Downing St. ahead of a NATO summit in the Netherlands where the 32-nation alliance is likely to commit to a big hike in military spending.
Like other NATO members, the U.K. has been reassessing its defense spending since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Starmer has pledged to increase British defense spending to 2.5% of gross domestic product by 2027 and to 3% by 2034.
Rutte has proposed a target of 3.5% of economic output on military spending and another 1.5% on 'defense-related expenditure' such as roads, bridges, airfields and sea ports. He said last week he is confident the alliance will agree to the target at its summit in The Hague on June 24-25.
At the moment, 22 of the 32 member countries meet or exceed NATO's current 2% target.
The new target would meet a demand by President Donald Trump that member states spend 5% of gross domestic product on defense. Trump has long questioned the value of NATO and complained that the U.S. provides security to European countries that don't contribute enough.
Rutte plans to say in a speech at the Chatham House think tank in London that NATO needs thousands more armored vehicles and millions more artillery shells, as well as a 400% increase in air and missile defense.
'We see in Ukraine how Russia delivers terror from above, so we will strengthen the shield that protects our skies,' he plans to say.
'Wishful thinking will not keep us safe. We cannot dream away the danger. Hope is not a strategy. So NATO has to become a stronger, fairer and more lethal alliance.'
European NATO members, led by the U.K. and France, have scrambled to coordinate their defense posture as Trump transforms American foreign policy, seemingly sidelining Europe as he looks to end the war in Ukraine.
Last week the U.K. government said it would build new nuclear-powered attack submarines, prepare its army to fight a war in Europe and become 'a battle-ready, armor-clad nation.' The plans represent the most sweeping changes to British defenses since the collapse of the Soviet Union more than three decades ago.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
20 minutes ago
- The Independent
Nigel Farage calls for ‘re-industrialisation' of Wales
Nigel Farage has said his party wants to restart Port Talbot's blast furnaces and 're-industrialise Wales'. On a visit to South Wales, the leader of Reform UK said the resumption of traditional steelmaking and coal production is the party's long-term ambition if it comes to power. The speech came one year ahead of the Senedd elections in May next year, where the party is looking to end Labour's 26 years of domination. Addressing reporters, Mr Farage acknowledged that plans to open a traditional furnace could take years and cost 'in the low billions'. The GMB Union has branded the plans 'more lies from an opportunistic chancer'. Port Talbot's remaining blast furnaces were shut down in September last year, with a new electric arc furnace being built in their place. 'Our ambition is to re-industrialise Wales,' Mr Farage said. 'We are going to be using more steel over the next few years than we have probably ever used. 'As we increase military spending and as we attempt a house building programme in Wales, and even more so in England, of massive proportions, just to catch up with the population explosion over the last 20 years, we are going to need a lot of steel.' The Reform leader said 'specific types of coal' are needed in the UK, particularly for a new blast furnace. 'We should be producing ourselves, rather than importing,' he said. While he acknowledged 'mining is dangerous', he said the industry could provide well-paying jobs. Mr Farage acknowledged the plan to open a new furnace would cost 'in the low billions' and would be 'no easy thing'. 'It's a massive, expensive job to re-open blast furnaces, we're going to need cheaper energy, we're going to need much cheaper coal, we are going to need private business partners prepared to come into a joint venture,' he said. Responding to the GMB Union allegations that his party's plans were 'lies', Mr Farage said the union was tied to the Labour Party as one of its biggest funders. He said: 'They see us as a challenge, and therefore, they'll be rude about us. 'What you will find is that increasingly, GMB members are going to vote for us, and the more GMB members vote for us, the more upsetGMB officials and leaders will become. 'Frankly, the trade unions have done nothing to protect British workers through open borders over the last 20-25 years.' During his speech, Mr Farage said he doubted that the electric arc furnace, which is due to come online in 2028, 'will ever, ever be switched on'. Challenged on what evidence he had, he argued that with British energy prices being so high, it would be producing 'very, very expensive secondary steel'. He added: 'I hope I'm wrong, an electric arc furnace is not the real deal, but it's better than nothing.' Mr Farage said the party's campaign for the Senedd election next May 'starts today', but would not say when Reform would announce aleader in Wales. Regional officer Ruth Brady, speaking at the GMB's annual conference in Brighton, said: 'The people of Port Talbot will see this for what it is – more lies from this opportunistic chancer. 'Nigel Farage was happy to let British Steel go to the wall. He'll trot out any line when the cameras are rolling. He doesn't care about steel communities or steel workers.' Ms Brady said the plans to shut the blast furnaces were made by the last Tory government and the union wanted Labour to 'make good on their promises to our members in Port Talbot'.
Telegraph
20 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Putin's summer of savage brutality has just begun
In the aftermath of Ukraine's audacious 'Operation Spider's Web', which claimed as many as 41 of Russia's military jets in drone attacks on four airbases across the country last Sunday, Vladimir Putin vowed revenge. Relaying his conversation with the Russian president in the attack's aftermath, Donald Trump said – without the slightest hint of alarm or condemnation – 'president Putin did say, and very strongly, that he will have to respond to the recent attack on the airfields'. Now, it appears that response has arrived. Overnight, Moscow launched its 'biggest overnight bombardment' of the war so far, according to Ukraine's air force, directing 479 drones and 20 missiles predominantly at the western and central parts of the country. The attack reached as far west as Rivne, unnerving Poland – Ukraine's neighbour – to such a degree that it felt compelled to scramble its airforce to patrol for stray missiles. Moscow has been ramping up the intensity of its attacks on Ukraine for several weeks now, setting new records for the number of drones launched on consecutive weekends in a row. But Operation Spider's Web appears to have triggered an escalation in Russia's bombardment. Just on Thursday, Ukrainian officials reported that over 400 had once again been launched at the country, with the capital city Kyiv heavily bombarded and over 50 people injured nationwide. While Ukraine's air defences are able to shoot down most of the drones sent their way, even the fraction that get through manage to do a great deal of damage and impact civilian morale, as Ukrainians across the country are forced into bomb shelters day after day. The escalation in Moscow's aerial attacks on Ukraine comes as the signs increasingly point to yet another new Russian offensive getting underway this summer. Some analysts argue that it has already started. Putin's forces are advancing through Donetsk and Luhansk and appear to have their sights set on the region of Dnipropetrovsk. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed this morning that the aim of the advance was, in part, to create a 'buffer zone' along the front line. According to Ukrainian military intelligence, some 125,000 Russian troops are also being amassed in the Sumy and Kharkiv regions. Some analysts suggest their aim could be to try and push forward as close to the Dnipro river, which runs north to south through the country, by the end of the year as possible. For all of Putin's insistence to Trump that he is ready to discuss an end to his war in Ukraine, the actions of his army suggest quite the opposite. Last month, while Russian and Ukrainian delegations met in Istanbul to notionally discuss terms for the end to the war, Putin's troops gained territory twice as quickly as in April. Bluntly put, despite Operation Spider's Web, Putin remains on the front foot in the war and as long as he's willing to sacrifice ever more Russians to the meat grinder of the front line, he will probably remain so. At the moment, he simply has no incentive to sit down and seriously negotiate an end to this conflict – with Trump, Zelensky or anyone else. To think otherwise is simply delusional.
The National
21 minutes ago
- The National
Nicola Sturgeon's memoir Frankly – here's what we know so far
The former first minister's hotly anticipated memoir is set to hit the shelves in the coming months. Published by Pan MacMillan and titled Frankly, the book is likely to dominate headlines once it is available. So, here's what we know about it so far. READ MORE: Ruth Maguire reveals she's cancer free and 'excited to return to work' 'Deeply personal' Announced in August 2023, Sturgeon said the book would be 'deeply personal and revealing'. Pan MacMillan won a bidding war out of nine publishers at an auction after she resigned as first minister in February that year. The book will tell the story of Sturgeon's childhood in Ayrshire as well as her career in politics, where she was Scotland's first female first minister and the longest serving in Holyrood's history. She also worked with five different prime ministers during her time in office. Sturgeon said at the time the book was announced that writing it was 'exciting, if also daunting'. (Image: Andrew Milligan) 'Restrictions' Under the Radcliffe Rules, former government ministers, civil servants and special advisers are free to publish memoirs of their time in office. However, this has to be signed off by the Permanent Secretary, Scotland's most senior civil servant, who will review the manuscript to make sure it doesn't impact national security interests, intergovernmental relations, or anything confidential. According to documents recently published on the Scottish Government's website and released via FOI, Sturgeon's memoir passed checks with no changes. Officials were sent four hard copies of the book, with the documents revealing that 'at all times strong security arrangements have been observed' and that only a small number of staff had access to it. 'On the basis of advice from my review group, it is not considered that any changes are required to the manuscript in order to comply with the Radcliffe Rules or the Scottish Ministerial Code,' John-Paul Marks, the former permanent secretary, wrote to Sturgeon in April. READ MORE: Labour Government 'must protect' UK-flagged Madleen aid ship Publication The book is due to be published on August 14, with Sturgeon being paid a £300,000 advance for her work. This is being paid in instalments to her company, and is made public through her MSP register of interest. Sturgeon is set to go on a launch tour for the book across Scotland, including an appearance at Edinburgh's Usher Hall and the Edinburgh International Book Festival. Ticket prices range from £33 to £73. Sturgeon also posted a video of herself signing a huge pile of pages that will be attached to the book for those who have pre-ordered. There have been some hints about what the book will contain. 'Full of the verve and wit that made Sturgeon one of the most high-profile politicians in the UK, this is a unique blend of personal insight and captivating vignettes,' a blurb for the book reads. 'Infused throughout with a love of Scotland and its people, it honestly discusses Sturgeon's mistakes, her battles, and her triumphs. Frankly is the compelling story of no ordinary politician.'
