Geopolitics
Red rag to a bull
Trump’s valid point about US and European defence spending could be overshadowed by his antagonism of his Nato allies.
As leaders assemble in Brussels for the Nato gathering today, many are hoping to avoid a rerun of June’s G7 summit where a belligerent US president frustrated key allies with a distinctly “America first” approach. There are no signs that today will be any different. In the run-up, Trump has professed the disparity between US and EU defence spending within Nato. The problem is, he’s right. Germany’s spending has lagged in recent years; while Angela Merkel has committed to expanding it to 1.5 per cent of GDP, the country still falls short of the 2 per cent goal set in 2014. European leaders have become used to the US providing defence muscle, as well as its willingness to act as world policeman – but those days are long gone. In the meantime, Trump’s penchant for treating allies like adversaries will be a source of tension on the world stage.