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Top UK Diplomat Urges NATO to Up Defense Spending Amid Possible Trump Return

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Increasing NATO defense spending and gearing up the alliance in its strongest form will protect it from risks connected with former US President Donald Trump's potential reelection in November, UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron told the Daily Mail newspaper.
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In February, Trump said that if elected as the US president he would not protect the countries that do not "pay" their "bills." As of 2023, one third of the alliance's countries met the NATO defense spending target of 2% of GDP, with two-thirds expected to meet it by the end of 2024.

"Whoever the new president is, if they can see NATO is strong and growing and spending at 2 per cent plus and Sweden and Finland – highly capable countries – are members, the new President will want to invest in that success and be part of that success," the minister said on Thursday.

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He added that if by the end of the year Russia has not achieved a lot on the battlefield, "then a new or re-elected President will see Ukraine is an issue worth investing in."
At the same time, Cameron acknowledged that he was concerned over the fact everyone was getting exhausted by the Ukraine conflict, adding that next week he would fly to the United States to try to convince the US Congress to pass the foreign aid bill with $60 billion for Ukraine, which has been stalled since February.
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