Donald Trump sparked a wave of outrage through explanation that he encouraged Russia to attack NATO member countries which do not meet the target of 2% of GDP in military spending.
Trump loves to be talked about. For better or for worse, as long as we talk about him. This is the essence of advertising.
An advertisement that is disastrous for the countries allied with NATO and for the United States itself.
An advertisement that is very far from the truth.
But Trump doesn't care about the truth.
This truth is that in 2014, NATO members decided to increase their military spending so that by 2025 it would reach 2% of each country's GDP.
- Listen to international political expert Loïc Tassé on Benoit Dutrizac's show QUB :
Almost 2%
While in 2014 only four NATO member states met or exceeded this 2%, in 2023 there were eleven that achieved it. These include Poland, the United States, the Baltic countries, Romania, Hungary and the United Kingdom.
In summary, six other countries, including France and Bulgaria, have almost reached this goal with military spending between 1.8% and 1.9% of their GDP. Germany, Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands spend between 1.6 and 1.7% of their GDP on arms purchases.
The remaining 9 countries include Canada (1.4%), Spain (1.3%), Italy (1.5%) and Turkey (1.3%). Are these countries the fools of the class? Not so much when you look at gross military spending.
With military spending of $33 billion, Italy ranks twelfth in the world. Canada ranks 14th (27 billion), followed by Spain 15th (20 billion) and Turkey 23rd (11 billion).
Most NATO countries are therefore on track to reach the 2% military spending threshold in 2025. Most of those that don't still have significant military spending, even though they don't match his wealth.
Photo AFP
For the good of the United States
But there is something else. Trump forgets to say that the United States is the largest arms exporter. Any increase in NATO military budgets greatly benefits the American military industry.
No other NATO country has such a great advantage in this regard.
Not only does Trump not know the latest figures on military investments, he also does not weigh them against their economic impact.
On the other hand, by suggesting that the United States would not defend certain NATO countries under his presidency, Trump has just helped Europe's military industry tremendously.
At the same time, it has also frightened America's allies, even as Washington is bound by treaties that cannot be terminated overnight.
Really, China and Russia should be happy.