The US Secretary of Defense again accuses allies of not spending enough on NATO. The USA could probably soon draw conclusions.
May 31, 2026, 4:48 p.mMay 31, 2026, 4:48 p.m
US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has once again threatened its European allies with consequences if defense spending is too low. “Allies who refuse to take on more responsibility and contribute to our common defense will have to deal with a significant change in our approach,” Hegseth said on Saturday at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore. According to a media report, the Pentagon wants to present plans for a reduction in US capabilities to defend Europe as early as June.
Pete Hegseth, US Secretary of War.Image: keystone
“For too long, polite requests to our European allies to spend more on their own defense have fallen on deaf ears,” said Hegseth in Singapore. In the meantime, the allies were “finally catching up”. At the same time, he accused European states of having cultivated “hollow rhetoric about a rules-based international order” while “opening their borders wide and hollowing out their armies.”
NATO states increase defense spending
The Pentagon chief called on Western European countries in particular to refrain from “moral sermons” when they have different interests. Asian states understood that lasting partnerships were not based on “idealistic values” but on concrete national interests. “When our interests diverge, we adapt pragmatically, without drama and without preaching,” said Hegseth. “I think Western Europe could learn something from this.”
Last year, NATO member states pledged to increase their defense spending to 3.5 percent of their respective gross domestic product (GDP) by 2035 and to spend a further 1.5 percent on defense-related expenses. However, despite increased efforts, many states said they may not be able to meet this five percent target.
Report: USA will soon decide on troop withdrawals
Hegseth announced “important decisions” on Europe’s security. «Europe and the NATO “We have important decisions to make and you will find out more soon,” he said. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio recently told Europeans that they had to learn to live with fewer US soldiers in Europe. Accordingly, there should soon be adjustments to the forces that can be mobilized within 180 days in the event of a crisis.
US soldiers during an exercise in Germany.Image: keystone
According to a report in “Welt am Sonntag”, the NATO allies will be informed at the next so-called force sourcing conference in June about what military capabilities the USA In the future, we no longer want to provide more, or only to a limited extent, for the defense of Europe. A senior Pentagon official told the newspaper, Washington wanted to “provide the allies with the necessary information and clarity” in order to “advance the transition to European defense as quickly and effectively as possible”.
Confusion over US withdrawal plans from Europe
According to the report, exactly which skills should be reduced has not yet been publicly determined. The focus, however, would be on contributions to the NATO Force Model, i.e. the system for quickly strengthening the alliance in the event of war. There had recently been contradictory signals from Washington: at the beginning of May, the Pentagon announced that it would withdraw 5,000 soldiers from Germany; last week declared US President Donald Trump then, “5,000 additional soldiers”. Poland to want to send.
Since the beginning of Trump’s second presidency, the US government has regularly called on Europe to increase military spending and take on more responsibility for its own defense. The US security strategy published last November states that Washington wants to continue to support Europe in terms of freedom and security, but at the same time strengthen Europe’s “civilizational self-confidence” and encourage it to assume primary responsibility for its own defense. Germany is explicitly criticized in the paper, particularly for its excessive dependence on Russia and China.
In Singapore, French Defense Minister Catherine Vautrin referred to French defense spending. “In ten years we will have doubled the defense budget,” she said. Regarding the relationship with the USA, Vautrin said that there are “250 years of history” between the two countries. France and the USA are allies, “we don’t always agree”. But that doesn’t stop both sides from talking and working with each other.