JUNE 6, 2025 – While jointly speaking at a NATO defense meeting in Brussels, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte both stated an increase in defense spending targets — by both the United States and NATO ally countries — is essential to deterring the coming threats that are posed by anti-Western aggressors.
“Today will be an important meeting, because we will agree on the capability targets we need going forward to keep one billion people safe in NATO territory,” Rutte said.
“From this, we will decide, at the NATO summit, [on] the spending; and we already know we need to spend much, much more if we want to fulfill all these targets,” Rutte continued, while referring to an upcoming, annual meeting in The Hague.
The 2025 Hague summit is scheduled to take place June 24-26.
After thanking Rutte for his hospitality, Hegseth said that he was on a veritable mission in Europe to make sure that every NATO member nation contributes enough of their reasonable share toward unified defense against foreign aggressors.
“The reason I’m here is to make sure every country in NATO understands every shoulder has to be to the plow; every country has to contribute — at that level of 5% [of each country’s gross domestic product] — as a recognition of the nature of the threat,” Hegseth said.
Hegseth went on to say that the United States is both proud to stand with its allies while also making sure that America’s geopolitical pursuit of peace through strength does not equate to reliance in a world of multiple threats.
“[The goal is] deterrence and peace through strength, but it can’t be reliance,” Hegseth said.
“It cannot — and will not — be reliance on America in a world of a lot of threats where America is poised to help take on those threats.”
Hegseth then thanked Rutte for having “hard and necessary” conversations with him over the matter of mutual, nation defense.
“We need to be considering the threats we face in the world today, and [we need to] have that conversation robustly and constructively,” Hegseth said.
Hegseth’s stance on NATO has been consistent since he took office in early January of this year.
In early February, he called for all NATO allied countries to increase their defense spending and take the lead in providing for Ukraine and Europe’s security.
Later that month, he praised the U.S. alliance with Poland during a joint press conference with that country’s defense minister in Warsaw.
Hegseth also thanked the Rutte for being a strong ally.
“We need our allies to step up, as well as we stand alongside them,” Hegseth told Rutte, adding that “those hard conversations” will continue.
“Pete, thank you for being here; thank you for your leadership; and thank you for being such a staunch ally,” Rutte said.
By Matthew Olay, DOD News