The Hague, June 25 (EFE).- Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Wednesday that NATO is as strong and as important as ever, stressing unity amid uncertainty over United States’ commitment to mutual defense.
The Labour leader, speaking to British media before the start of the NATO summit in The Hague, said that the alliance is “bigger than we were before, we’re stronger than we were before.”
“NATO is as relevant and important today as it has ever been. We live in a very volatile world, and today is about the unity of NATO, showing that strength,” the leader said when asked about US President Donald Trump’s apparent indecision regarding the meaning of Article 5, which stipulates that an attack against one member is an attack against all.
On Tuesday Trump dodged a question on his commitment to the clause, saying it “depends on your definition” of it, adding: “but I’m committed to being their friend.”
Starmer insisted “we stand here as allies” and the countries are committed to the “importance of NATO.”
During the summit, Starmer hopes to commit to increasing national security spending to 5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) within a decade, his Downing Street office said Monday.
The prime minister intends to achieve 5 percent of GDP on security by 2035, broken down into 3.5 percent on defense spending and 1.5 percent on homeland security and national resilience.
According to NATO estimates, the United Kingdom will achieve at least 4.1 percent of GDP in this area by 2027. EFE
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