Latest news with #defenseSpending
The Independent
24 minutes ago
- Business
- The Independent
Trump makes Second World War joke about Germany re-arming during Merz meeting
Donald Trump made a Second World War joke about Germany re-arming while meeting the country's chancellor, Friedrich Merz, in the Oval Office on Thursday, 5 June, amid negotiations over tariffs. Mr Merz went into the meeting hoping to keep Western support for Ukraine, make progress on trade, and bolster German military spending. 'I know that you're spending more money on defence now,' the US president began. 'They said never let Germany rearm." Mr Trump added that Germany's rearming is a good thing, "at least to a certain point".
The Independent
an hour ago
- Business
- The Independent
Watch live: Trump meets German leader in Oval Office
Watch live as Donald Trump meets German chancellor Friedrich Merz in the Oval Office on Thursday, 5 June. Though the pair have spoken by phone, it is Mr Merz's first meeting with the US president since becoming leader of Europe's biggest economy. Topics that Mr Trump is likely to raise with Mr Merz include Germany's defense spending, trade, Ukraine and 'democratic backsliding," a White House official said. Today's meeting came after two explosive showdowns between Mr Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. In Mr Zelensky's meeting, Mr Trump and JD Vance shouted over the Ukrainian leader. The meeting appeared to go south when the US vice president accused the Ukrainian leader of being "disrespectful" when Mr Zelensky said US security guarantees are necessary for a ceasefire.
LBCI
2 hours ago
- Business
- LBCI
NATO 'very close' to consensus on 5% spending target: US defense chief
U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said on Thursday that NATO allies were close to agreeing on a deal regarding defense spending to meet President Donald Trump's demand for five percent of GDP. "Countries in there are well exceeding two percent, and we think very close, almost near consensus, on a five percent commitment for NATO in The Hague later this month," Hegseth said after meeting NATO counterparts in Brussels. "There are a few countries that are not quite there yet. I won't name any names. We don't -- it's amongst friends in that room. We'll get them there," he said. AFP
NHK
4 hours ago
- Business
- NHK
NATO defense ministers to hold final talks on defense spending increase
The defense chiefs of NATO member countries are set to hold final-stage talks on a timeline for increasing defense spending. A meeting of NATO defense ministers opened on Thursday in the Belgian capital of Brussels. US President Donald Trump is pushing alliance members to raise their defense spending to 5 percent of GDP. Ahead of the meeting, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said: "You can't freeload. You need to spend." He added that NATO "cannot and will not be reliance on America in a world of a lot of threats." NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said European and Canadian allies are expected to step up defense spending. He said, "I'm pretty confident we will get there as a result." To meet the 5 percent target, the NATO chief has proposed that member nations increase their defense spending to 3.5 percent of GDP, with an additional 1.5 percent allocated to security-related expenditures by 2032. Some NATO officials suggest that timeframe is unrealistic. NATO aims to reach an agreement at a summit meeting scheduled to take place in the Netherlands late this month.
Al Jazeera
8 hours ago
- Business
- Al Jazeera
US presses NATO to agree defence spending hike
United States Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has pressed NATO members to agree to Donald Trump's demand for a major increase in defence spending ahead of a summit later this month. The US president has said NATO allies should boost investment in defence to 5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), up from the current target of 2 percent. 'To be an alliance, you got to be more than flags. You got to be formations. You got to be more than conferences. You need to be, keep combat-ready capabilities,' Hegseth said as he arrived for a meeting of defence ministers in Brussels on Thursday. 'We're here to continue the work that President Trump started, which is a commitment to 5 percent defence spending across this alliance, which we think will happen,' Hegseth said, adding: 'It has to happen by the summit at The Hague later this month.' In an attempt to compromise with the new target, NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte has proposed that members of the military alliance boost defence spending to 3.5 percent of GDP and commit a further 1.5 percent to broader security-related spending. 'We have to go further and we have to go faster,' Rutte told reporters on Wednesday. 'A new defence investment plan will be at the heart of the NATO summit in The Hague,' he added. Reporting from Brussels, Al Jazeera's Hashem Ahelbarra said for some European countries, including Spain, Germany and Belgium, meeting a 5 percent target will be 'extremely difficult'. 'But they have decided they are going to further coordinate their military strategy particularly when it comes to acquiring air defence systems, long-range missiles and also train their troops to be ready for the potential of any geopolitical change,' Ahelbarra said. Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, European NATO members have been steadily increasing their defence spending. Ahelbarra said European members are 'concerned' that Russia remains the 'biggest threat to stability in the region'. Diplomats have said that countries are attempting to negotiate the timeline to achieve the 5 percent target. Rutte has proposed reaching the target by 2032, which some countries consider too late, while others think it's unrealistic, considering current spending and industrial production levels. Lithuanian Defence Minister Dovile Sakaliene said on Wednesday that the 2032 target was 'definitely too late, and pushed for a target of 2030 at the latest. Swedish Defence Minister Pal Jonson told reporters on Thursday that Stockholm also wants to see the bloc reach the 5 percent target by 2030. Meanwhile, NATO officials have estimated that, on average, meeting the new targets would cost countries between 3.5 and 3.7 percent of GDP.
