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U.S. President
Donald Trump has raised questions about his commitment to the
NATO defense alliance if European countries do not raise defense
spending to 2 percent of economic output. The United States puts
up 70 percent of alliance funds.
U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis warned North Atlantic Treaty
Organization allies on Wednesday that they must honor military
spending pledges to make sure the United States does not
moderate its support.
"It has been the American message for many, many years. I am
very much against letting ourselves be pushed into this,"
Juncker said in a speech on the sidelines of the international
Munich Security Conference.
He said he knew that Germany would no longer have a budget
surplus if it increased defense spending to 2 percent of GDP
from 1.22 percent.
"I don't like our American friends narrowing down this concept
of security to the military," he said, arguing it would be
sensible to look at a "modern stability policy" made up of
several components.
"If you look at what Europe is doing in defense, plus
development aid, plus humanitarian aid, the comparison with the
United States looks rather different. Modern politics cannot
just be about raising defense spending," he said.
"Europeans must bundle their defense spending better and spend
the money more efficiently," he added.
(Reporting by Andreas Rinke; Writing by Madeline Chambers;
Editing by Peter Cooney)
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