NATO Secretary General: Will Europe defend itself? keep dreaming

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said yesterday (Monday) that Europe is unable to defend itself without the United States, and rejected the possibility of establishing a “European army”, as politicians on the continent have been calling for in recent days. The words were said to the members of the defense and foreign relations committees of the European Parliament, against the background of the recent tensions with Trump on the issue of Greenland and his repeated threats – which pushed the alliance to unusual tensions.

“If anyone here thinks that the European Union or Europe as a whole can defend itself without the United States, let them keep dreaming,” Ruta told lawmakers yesterday. “It’s just not possible.”

Rota expressed clear reservations about the idea of ​​establishing an independent European military force. “A European pillar of NATO is a pretty empty phrase,” he said, adding that a separate European army would create “a lot of duplication” with NATO. According to him, there are also those who will benefit from this in the international arena. “Putin will like it,” he said, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin, amid the possibility of deepening the divide between Europe and the US.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of France Jean-Noel Barrow addressed Ruta’s words tonight, and replied: “No, dear Mark Ruta, the Europeans can and must accept responsibility for their security, even the US agrees. It is the European pillar of NATO.”

Following his remarks yesterday, Ruta referred to aid to Ukraine and called on the European Union to allow Kiev to use part of the planned loan of 90 billion euros also for the purchase of weapons from the United States. This despite pressure from countries like France to prefer only European suppliers. “The loan package will make a huge difference to Ukraine’s security,” Rota said. “But I implore you to allow flexibility in the way this money will be invested and not to create too many restrictions with ‘buy European’ clauses.”

According to him, restrictions on Ukraine’s freedom of decision will harm its military capability. “Europe is now building its defense industry,” he said, “but it cannot currently provide everything Ukraine needs to defend itself today. Therefore, when you advance this loan, I ask you to put Ukraine’s needs first.”

Ruta also emphasized the importance of maintaining contact with the United States and expressed confidence in the American commitment to the alliance. “The United States has a full commitment to collective defense,” he said. “The United States needs NATO.” He even praised Trump for the fact that all allied countries increased their defense spending at least on the way to the goal of 5% of GDP. “Do you really think that Spain, Italy, Belgium and Canada would have gone from 1.5% to 2% without Trump? There is no way,” he said.

Regarding Europe’s ability to act alone, Ruta warned of the heavy costs. “Without the United States, the defense of Europe will cost a huge fortune,” he said. Referring to the goal of increasing defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2035, he added: “If Europe really wants to go it alone, forget that 5% will be enough. It will be 10%.” According to him, it is about “more and more billions of euros”, among other things to replace the nuclear deterrent currently provided by the United States.

Ruta’s words come after weeks in which Trump threatened that force might be used to take over Greenland and even called for the imposition of tariffs on European countries due to their limited military presence on the ground. Last week, Trump backed away from the possibility of using force and the tariffs, after presenting talks on an outline for a deal that he claims would give the United States more control over the large Arctic island. However, Denmark and Greenland made it clear that they would not agree to an infringement of their sovereignty.

Rutte, to whom Trump attributed a role in helping to forge the understanding, said that “I had no mandate to negotiate” on behalf of Denmark, and rejected the idea that the Greenland talks were related to the assurance of American security guarantees to Ukraine.

At the same time, the European Parliament agreed last week to quickly advance the approval of the loan to Ukraine, which should be in effect until 2027, while the EU countries continue to hold talks in an attempt to reach a compromise on the legal proposal.