US State Secretary hails Trump’s role in driving NATO’s defence spending push

In an exclusive interview on the sidelines of this year’s NATO summit, Secretary of State Marco Rubio hailed the meeting as “the Trump summit,” attributing the renewed vigor within the alliance largely to President Donald Trump’s persistent demands for increased defence spending.

Rubio highlighted how Trump’s pressure during his first term, coupled with the ongoing conflict triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, has spurred nearly all NATO members to commit to boosting their military expenditures, Caliber.Az reports, citing foreign media.

“The combination of pressure from President Trump in his first administration, and then a full invasion and war in Europe by Vladimir Putin has led now to virtually every country in – every single partner in the NATO alliance, pledging to get to that 5 per cent mark, with the exception, unfortunately, of Spain,” Rubio noted.

Spain’s failure to meet the agreed defence spending target has attracted sharp criticism at the summit. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez secured an eleventh-hour exemption from the 2 per cent of GDP spending guideline, drawing ire from allies. Rubio described Spain’s position as “a big problem,” adding, “I don’t think that the agreement that Spain has reached is sustainable, and frankly it puts them in a very tough spot with regards to their other allies and partners.”

The issue is expected to be a key topic of discussion when NATO leaders convene later this week. Rubio warned that Spain’s exemption could set a precedent, potentially encouraging other nations to seek similar leniency and undermine the collective spending commitment.

Despite these challenges, Rubio expressed optimism about the alliance’s future strength, crediting Trump’s influence for a stronger, more capable NATO. “If everybody lives up to their commitment, it’s going to be a much stronger alliance with more capable partners,” he said. “[It will] frankly allow the United States to still be a vibrant, strong member of it, the biggest member of it, but also reallocate resources to other parts of the world without taking away from the strength of the alliance.”

By Vafa Guliyeva