https://sputnikglobe.com/20240219/if-you-dont-pay-you-get-kicked-out---senator-graham-chides-nato-members-1116872509.html
'If You Don't Pay, You Get Kicked Out' - Senator Graham Chides NATO Members
'If You Don't Pay, You Get Kicked Out' - Senator Graham Chides NATO Members
Sputnik International
NATO members are obligated by a Defense Investment Pledge to devote no less than two percent of their GDP annually to defense spending, but most US allies are underperforming, according to Senator Lindsey Graham.
2024-02-19T12:18+0000
2024-02-19T12:18+0000
2024-02-19T12:18+0000
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US Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) has suggested expelling NATO members whose defense budget falls short of the alliance’s spending benchmark.Members of the 31-nation alliance are obligated by a Defense Investment Pledge to allocate a minimum of two percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) annually, but 19 out of 31 members do not adhere to it, according to Graham.He expressed the necessity for NATO to transform it into a meaningful obligation, emphasizing his strong admiration for the alliance. Pointing out that "there's still $70-80 billion left on the table," and urged all delinquent allies to pay the two percent.NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg acknowledged the budgetary shortcomings of allies during a Q&A session at the Heritage Foundation in January:Donald Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination ahead of November’s election, has consistently voiced opposition to the military bloc, saying it's "obsolete," and asserted that NATO allies “laugh at the stupidity of the United States” for spending more on Ukraine.
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nato, us-led military club, the alliance, us senator lindsey graham, trump's criticisms of nato, nato secretary-general jens stoltenberg.
nato, us-led military club, the alliance, us senator lindsey graham, trump's criticisms of nato, nato secretary-general jens stoltenberg.
'If You Don't Pay, You Get Kicked Out' - Senator Graham Chides NATO Members
NATO members are obligated by a Defense Investment Pledge to devote no less than two percent of their GDP annually to defense spending, but most US allies are underperforming, according to Senator Lindsey Graham.
US Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) has suggested expelling NATO members whose defense budget falls short of the alliance’s spending benchmark.
“I want to have a system where if you don’t pay, you get kicked out...President Trump is right to want NATO nations to meet their obligation of 2 percent”, the US senator stated during a CBS Face the Nation interview.
Members of the
31-nation alliance are obligated by a Defense Investment Pledge to allocate a minimum of two percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) annually, but
19 out of 31 members do not adhere to it, according to Graham.
He expressed the necessity for NATO to transform it into a meaningful obligation, emphasizing his strong admiration for the alliance. Pointing out that "there's still $70-80 billion left on the table," and urged all delinquent allies to pay the two percent.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg
acknowledged the budgetary shortcomings of allies during a Q&A session at the Heritage Foundation in January:
“We expect at least half of the Allies to meet the 2 percent target. That's not good enough, but it's enormously much better than when we made the pledge. And also our Allies who are not yet at 2 percent, they are coming very close, most of them. And all have a plan in place to reach 2 percent.”
Donald Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination ahead of November’s election, has consistently voiced opposition to the military bloc, saying it's "obsolete," and asserted that NATO allies “laugh at the stupidity of the United States” for spending more on Ukraine.
