US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in Stuttgart, during his first trip since taking office, that it was up to Europe to "invest more" in its own defense.
"The European continent deserves to be safe from any aggression, but neighboring countries should invest the most in individual and collective defense," Hegseth told reporters after visiting US forces in Stuttgart.
Common sense dictates that you defend your neighborhood, and the Americans will join you to help you in that defense, Hegseth added.
The US Secretary of Defense is visiting US military commands in Germany this week and is scheduled to attend a meeting of NATO defense ministers in Brussels on Wednesday, as well as a meeting of the Contact Group for Military Support to Ukraine.
The urgency of the moment requires that friends talk to each other about their capabilities, their leadership, intensify efforts, and share the burden, the Pentagon chief assessed.
US President Donald Trump wants NATO countries to increase their defense spending, citing a target of five percent of gross domestic product (GDP).
There is a consensus in Europe on the need to increase military spending, but the five percent threshold is considered unrealistic. The share that the US alone allocates to defense is around three percent.
Hegseth will visit Poland this week, which took over the rotating presidency of the European Union on January 1 and plans to spend 4,7 percent of its GDP on defense by 2025.
The US minister reiterated that Trump wants to conclude a "quick peace agreement in Ukraine."
Asked about the possible deployment of US forces to the country, Hegseth replied that the US would not send its forces to Ukraine.
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