Nato North Atlantic Treaty Organization
NATO "has a problem with Spain," Trump said before the start of the Hague summit
In this way, the US president criticizes Spain's spending level and also avoids Trump's explicit support for Article 5 of A0NATO, the mutual defense clause of its members.
The Spanish Government confirms that it will allocate 2.1% to military spending under pressure
Representatives from 32 countries that make up the Atlantic Alliance will meet today and tomorrow in The Hague.
Rutte says Spain will have to spend 3.5% of its GDP on military spending
In addition, the NATO Secretary-General added that the commitments will be reviewed by 2029. Rutte has made it clear that "NATO has no voluntary clause to stay out of an agreement" and that "it does not know the secondary and side agreements".
Spain has reached an agreement with NATO to exempt it from spending 5% on defence
On Thursday, the US again demanded that all NATO countries, including Spain, allocate 5% to defense after Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez informed NATO that he would not commit to raising defense spending to that amount.
Trump said Spain pays "very little" as a member of NATO
In addition, the US president has insisted that all members of the organization should invest 5% of GDP in defense.
Sanchez has informed NATO that it will no longer raise defense spending and that it is "irrational" by 5%
The President of the Spanish Government proclaims the legitimate right of each Government to make certain "sacrifices", such as raising taxes or reducing public services and social benefits.