BRUSSELS (AP) 鈥� Hours after U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth upbraided his NATO allies and announced a Pentagon of their performance, the leaders of many European nations were assessing a check list of progress made on security priorities.
In essence, Hegseth was telling the Europeans things they .
The list included their hike in defense spending, investment in industry to boost the production of military equipment, best use of lessons learned from the war in Ukraine, and the need to buy or develop drones, air defense systems and long-range weapons.
At a summit ending Friday, they mulled how to put joint European Union funding to best use and cut red tape to speed purchases, weighed the state of 鈥渕ilitary mobility鈥� to speed the deployment of troops and equipment, and upgrade ports and airports.
鈥淓urope鈥檚 defense readiness must be decisively ramped up by 2030,鈥� they reaffirmed. The list was not new, rather something since Russia’s full-scale in 2022.
Intelligence agencies have warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin could order an attack elsewhere in Europe before the end of the decade, especially if he defeats Ukraine. Already they accuse Russia of acts of and misinformation across Europe.
About two-thirds of EU member countries also stand in NATO鈥檚 ranks, and the added of the Trump administration has only girded them to forge ahead alone. Hegseth鈥檚 Pentagon review was just the latest surprise.
Pentagon chief blasts US allies
Hegseth does not attend many NATO meetings, and he left Thursday鈥檚 gathering of defense ministers early. But his first major speech to the allies in and his follow-up this week were memorable.
On Thursday he berated NATO as a 鈥減aper-tiger,鈥� said allies had been 鈥渟hameful鈥� and that 鈥渢oo many failed鈥� a test put to them by President Donald Trump when he sought use of their to launch attacks on Iran.
He even took a shot at their focus on 鈥済ender equity and climate change鈥� and slammed their migration policies.
Hegseth then gave them six months to shape up for a Pentagon performance review that tied the presence of U.S. forces in Europe and American investment in NATO to whether he believes they are pulling their weight.
鈥淚t鈥檚 protection racket framing that undermines NATO solidarity, trust in the U.S. commitment to NATO, and, ultimately, U.S. security interests,鈥� said Rachel Ellehuus, Director-General of the Royal United Services Institute think-tank.
Terms of the review are unknown
What the review really involves is not clear.
鈥淚t will be designed to ensure that NATO is moving fast and irreversibly toward Europe leading, stepping up to take primary responsibility for the defense of Europe,鈥� Hegseth said. 鈥淪ome countries will fail and others will pass with flying colors.鈥�
It might last 鈥渦p to six months, could be less,鈥� he said, and involve U.S. military commanders, members of Congress and the allies themselves.
He said that U.S. payments into a joint NATO budget that runs its headquarters and other facilities will depend on how they鈥檙e doing. 鈥淲here other allies do not spend with urgency, our dues contributions will go down,鈥� Hegseth said.
Talking to reporters at Brussels airport before flying out, he said it would also address 鈥渨here is the right place for basing. Where can we make sure we have access and overflight when we need it, so that America is properly postured on the continent.鈥�
NATO played no active role in the Iran war, but did from possible attack.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte could shed no light on what Hegseth’s review might entail.
鈥淭here鈥檚 still no clarity on exactly what the outcome will be, because that will depend on the review. So, we鈥檒l see what happens,鈥� Rutte said, adding that: 鈥淲herever we can be helpful, we will be helpful.鈥� Rutte might learn more when he travels to Washington next week.
The numbers show US allies doing quite well
As far as Rutte鈥檚 concerned, European allies and Canada are doing well, although they could always do more.
鈥淲hat we are seeing is staggering amounts of money coming in,鈥� he told reporters. 鈥淓urope and Canada are spending in 2025 more than $90 billion extra compared to 2024, which is almost a 20% increase in defense spending.鈥�
The extra money must now be converted into more military equipment, weapons and ammunition.
At their , the allies agreed to boost their military budgets to match that of the United States in terms of gross domestic product. Trump left the meeting a happy man, calling his NATO counterparts a 鈥渘ice group of people.鈥� But the review does not augur well for their next summit in Turkey on July 7-8.
Still, top European military officers now hold more command roles at NATO, and U.S. allies have taken charge of funneling arms and into Ukraine as the Trump administration has stepped back.
Some Europeans and Canada are also spending billions to buy vital air defense systems from the United States that they , whose war with Russia they see as an existential threat to Europe.
Indeed, it鈥檚 hard to see what more could be done, and faster, except perhaps to provide unfettered access to their airspace and bases on their territory for America to wage its wars elsewhere.
Ellehuus, a former top U.S. advisor at NATO, said that force positioning 鈥渟hould be driven by detailed threat assessments, operational requirements, and military planning 鈥� not used as a form of reward, punishment or revenge.鈥�
鈥淪uch framing undermines allies while they鈥檙e actively trying to solve the problem and telegraphs to adversaries that U.S. security commitments have a price tag,鈥� she said.
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