Post by Admin on Oct 4, 2023 18:45:13 GMT
Speakers at a European security conference on Tuesday warned that Ukraine's allies are running out of ammunition to give to Kyiv in its war against Russia.
One thread of these discussions at the Warsaw Security Forum was the need for NATO members to increase defense spending, an argument Donald Trump made years ago about the military alliance.
Speaking at a NATO summit in 2017, then-President Trump criticized NATO countries for not devoting more money to their defense spending. NATO members agreed in 2014 to use 2 percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) on defense, but at the time of Trump's remarks, only the United States and a few other NATO allies had met the goal.
The United Kingdom's Minister for Armed Forces James Heappey renewed the call for NATO to reach the 2 percent target while addressing the Warsaw Security Forum on Tuesday.
"If it's not the time—when there is a war in Europe—to spend 2 percent on defense, then when is?" Heappey said.
When reached for comment, a Trump spokesperson told Newsweek in an email: "President Trump is always right."
During his comments, Heappey maintained that NATO should continue its support for Ukraine against Russian President Vladimir Putin's invading forces.
"We can't stop just because our stockpiles are looking a bit thin," he said. "We have to keep Ukraine in the fight tonight and tomorrow and the day after and the day after. And if we stop, that doesn't mean that Putin automatically stops."
However, he said that giving to Ukraine must come while also increasing NATO's stockpiles. The U.K. currently meets the 2 percent defense spending target, but Heappey noted many other countries haven't reached the goal.
"The elephant in the room is that not everyone in the alliance is yet spending 2 percent of their GDP on defense," he said, per the BBC. "That must be the floor for our defense spending, not the ceiling."
Newsweek reached out to NATO via email for comment.
Dr. Erwan Lagadec, an associate research professor of international affairs at George Washington University, told Newsweek that the number of NATO allies meeting the 2 percent goal "had increased to ten, with more 'working on it.'"
"NATO summarizes the resulting progress by stating that between 2014 and 2023, the allies in the aggregate have spent $350-400 billion more on defense than they would have based on 2014 trends," Lagadec said.
Heappey was not the only official at the Warsaw conference to address the toll the Ukraine war has had on NATO stockpiles. Chair of the NATO Military Committee Admiral Rob Bauer urged the defense industry to "ramp up production in a much higher tempo" because Kyiv's allies are running low on ammunition.
"The bottom of the barrel is now visible," the official said.
One thread of these discussions at the Warsaw Security Forum was the need for NATO members to increase defense spending, an argument Donald Trump made years ago about the military alliance.
Speaking at a NATO summit in 2017, then-President Trump criticized NATO countries for not devoting more money to their defense spending. NATO members agreed in 2014 to use 2 percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) on defense, but at the time of Trump's remarks, only the United States and a few other NATO allies had met the goal.
The United Kingdom's Minister for Armed Forces James Heappey renewed the call for NATO to reach the 2 percent target while addressing the Warsaw Security Forum on Tuesday.
"If it's not the time—when there is a war in Europe—to spend 2 percent on defense, then when is?" Heappey said.
When reached for comment, a Trump spokesperson told Newsweek in an email: "President Trump is always right."
During his comments, Heappey maintained that NATO should continue its support for Ukraine against Russian President Vladimir Putin's invading forces.
"We can't stop just because our stockpiles are looking a bit thin," he said. "We have to keep Ukraine in the fight tonight and tomorrow and the day after and the day after. And if we stop, that doesn't mean that Putin automatically stops."
However, he said that giving to Ukraine must come while also increasing NATO's stockpiles. The U.K. currently meets the 2 percent defense spending target, but Heappey noted many other countries haven't reached the goal.
"The elephant in the room is that not everyone in the alliance is yet spending 2 percent of their GDP on defense," he said, per the BBC. "That must be the floor for our defense spending, not the ceiling."
Newsweek reached out to NATO via email for comment.
Dr. Erwan Lagadec, an associate research professor of international affairs at George Washington University, told Newsweek that the number of NATO allies meeting the 2 percent goal "had increased to ten, with more 'working on it.'"
"NATO summarizes the resulting progress by stating that between 2014 and 2023, the allies in the aggregate have spent $350-400 billion more on defense than they would have based on 2014 trends," Lagadec said.
Heappey was not the only official at the Warsaw conference to address the toll the Ukraine war has had on NATO stockpiles. Chair of the NATO Military Committee Admiral Rob Bauer urged the defense industry to "ramp up production in a much higher tempo" because Kyiv's allies are running low on ammunition.
"The bottom of the barrel is now visible," the official said.