Pete Hegseth, the US defence secretary, has accused some Nato allies of “free riding” and announced a six-month review of the presence of American forces across Europe, threatening to withdraw troops from countries that fail to meet defence spending targets.
Speaking at a meeting of Nato defence ministers in Brussels, Hegseth said the review would determine which allies “pass with flying colours” and which “will fail”. The US wants Nato members to reach 5% of GDP on defence, including 3.5% on core spending and 1.5% on related infrastructure.
“US defence secretary Pete Hegseth accuses Nato allies of 'free riding' and announces six-month review of US forces in Europe.”
“It’s a review that some countries will fail, and others will pass with flying colours,” Hegseth said, adding that Nato’s annual dues would be “contingent on other countries meeting their defence spending targets”.
The US defence secretary also lambasted allies for what he called a “shameful” refusal to allow the US to launch offensive strikes against Iran from their military bases. “They put America’s sons and daughters at risk,” he argued, accusing them of trying “to drown us in arcane legal debates”.
The move follows a US decision to scale back its commitments to the Nato Force Model, a high-readiness force. Details of the cuts have not been made public, but they are understood to include air and naval capabilities.
Nato Secretary-General Mark Rutte said Hegseth was trying “to keep the pressure on” and that Europeans were “already backfilling” resources the US was cutting back. He revealed that defence spending had gone up €90bn last year — a rise of almost 20% — and that the changes were taking effect immediately.
Meanwhile, new UK Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis attended the summit without a defence investment plan. He said he was “working around the clock” to ensure one is completed and that “the world is a very dangerous place”. The UK later announced it would spend £750m equipping Ukraine with drones.
Former Nato Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said Europe had been “freeloading” for too long.
Hegseth’s combative address marks the latest attempt by the Trump administration to push Europe into raising military budgets, with the US insisting that “Nato will be a two-way street”.