Hegseth says NATO ‘near consensus’ on 5% defense spending– www.washingtonexaminer.com

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Excerpt:

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth expressed confidence that NATO allies will agree to increase the minimum defense spending requirement, which the Trump administration has advocated.

Since his first administration, President Donald Trump has stressed the need for U.S. allies, in the alliance and beyond, to take on more of the burden to offset what he has said are decades of them taking advantage of the United States.

NATO allies are currently required to spend at least 2% of their country’s GDP on defense, but the U.S. is pushing for that to more than double to 5%. No country is currently at that 5% marker.

“I’m very encouraged by what we heard in there,” Hegseth said after a morning meeting of NATO defense ministers on Thursday in Brussels. “Countries in there are well exceeding 2% and we think very close, almost near consensus, on a 5% commitment to NATO.”

“The reason I’m here is to make sure every country in NATO understands (it) has to contribute at that level of 5% as a recognition of the nature of the threat,” he added. “It’s that hard power that actually deters. And it can’t just be U.S. capabilities.”