The confidence trickster was at it again on his visit to The Hague, reluctantly meeting members of the overly large family that is NATO. President Donald Trump was hoping to impress upon all present that allies of the United States, whatever inclination and whatever their domestic policy, should spend mightily on defence, inflating the margins of sense and sensibility against marginal threats. Never mind the strain placed on the national budget over such absurd priorities as welfare, health or education.
The marvellous irony in this is that much of the budget increases have been prompted byTrump’s perceived unreliability and capriciousness when it comes to European affairs. Would he, for instance, treat obligations of collective defence outlined in Article 5 of the organisation’s governing treaty with utmost seriousness? Since Washington cannot be relied upon to hold the fort against the satanic savages from the East, various European countries have been encouraging a spike in defence spending to fight the sprites and hobgoblins troubling their consciences at night.
The European Union, for instance, has put in place initiatives that will make getting more weaponry and investing in the military industrial complex easier than ever, raising the threshold of defence expenditure across all member countries to 3.5% of GDP by the end of the decade. And then there is the Ukraine conflict, a war Brussels cannot bear to see end on terms that might be remotely favourable to Russia.
The promised pecuniary spray made at the NATO summit was seen by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte as utterly natural if not eminently sensible. Not much else was. It was Rutte who remarked with infantile fawning that “Sometimes Daddy has to use tough language” when it came to sorting out the murderous bickering between Israel and Iran. Daddy Trump approved. “He likes me, I think he likes me,” the US president crowed with glowing satisfaction.
Rutte’s behaviour has been viewed with suspicion, as well it should. Under his direction, NATO headquarters have made a point of diminishing any focus on climate change and its Women, Peace, and Security agenda. He has failed to make much of Trump’s mania for the annexation of Greenland, or the President’s gladiatorial abuse of certain leaders when visiting the White House – Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky and South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa come to mind. “He is not paid to implement MAGA policy,” grumbled a European NATO diplomat to Euroactive.
In his doorstep statement of June 25, Rutte made his wish known that the NATO collective possess both the money and capabilities to cope, not just with Russia “but also the massive build-up of military in China, and the fact that North Korea, China and Iran, are supporting the war effort in Ukraine.” Lashings of butter were also added to the Trump ego when responding to questions. “Would you really think that the seven or eight countries not at 2% [of GDP expenditure on defence] at the beginning of this year would have reached the 2% if Trump would not have been elected President of the United States?” It was only appropriate, given the contributions of the US (“over 50% of the total NATO economy”), that things had to change for the Europeans and Canadians.
The centrepiece of the Hague Summit Declaration is a promise that 5% of member countries’ gross GDP will go to “core defence requirements as well as defence and security-related spending by 2035 to ensure our individual and collective obligations.” Traditional bogeyman Russia is the predictable antagonist, posing a “long-term threat […] to Euro-Atlantic security”, but so was “the persistent threat of terrorism.” The target is optimistic, given NATO’s own recent estimates that nine members spend less than the current target of 2% of GDP.
What is misleading in the declaration is the accounting process: the 3.5% of annual GDP that will be spent “on the agreed definition of NATO defence expenditure by 2035 to resource core defence requirements, and to meet NATO Capability Targets” is one component. The other 1.5%, a figure based on a creative management of accounts, is intended to “protect our critical infrastructure, defend our networks, ensure our civil preparedness and resilience, unleash innovation, and strengthen our defence industrial base.”
Another misleading element in the declaration is the claimed unanimity of member states. The Baltic countries and Poland are forever engaged in increasing their defence budgets in anticipation of a Russian attack, but the same cannot be said of other countries less disposed to the issue. Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico, for instance, declared on the eve of the summit that his country had “better things to spend money on.” Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has also called the 5% target “incompatible with our world view,” preferring to focus on a policy of prudent procurement.
Rutte seemed to revel in his role as wallah and jesting sycophant, making sure Trump was not only placated but massaged into a state of satisfaction. It was a sight all the stranger for the fact that Trump’s view of Russian President Vladimir Putin, is a warm one. Unfortunately for the secretary general, his role will be forever etched in the context of European history as an aspiring warmonger, one valued at 5% of the GDP of any of the NATO member states. Hardly a flattering epitaph.
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An imagined conversation, bunkered down in the Situation Room at the White House:
‘War?’ Mmmm, war.’
‘War, fuck yeh.’
‘These burgers are damn good.’
‘Fries are too, I love ’em.’
‘War, you betcha…’
‘Gotta keep our boys busy’.
‘Fuckin’ democrats are gonna shit ’emselves when they find out.’
‘Fuck ’em, fuckin’ losers.’
‘War, c’mon baby, just do it.’
‘Let it rip.’
‘Pass me another burger, will ya.’
‘Want fries with that?’
‘Yeh, and gimme some ketchup.’
‘Gonna tell Bibi?’
‘Nah, fuck him, another fuckin’ loser.’
‘Haha, Israel’s such a clusterfuck…’
‘He’ll go to jail ya know, once this is done.’
‘If he doesn’t get taken out beforehand.’
‘We could do that… ain’t difficult.’
‘Goddam, I love this Diet Coke… gets me up in the morning.’
‘Haha, my old lady gets ME up in the morning…’
‘No smut talk here boys, this is a serious issue.’
‘Bunker busters… ain’t that a beautiful word?’
‘Those towel-headed Iraaaniannns won’t know what hit ’em…’
‘War, now dang me if that ain’t a beautiful word too…’
‘You betcha…’
‘Are we agreed then?’
‘You betcha…’
‘I’ll dial in the boys on Signal, let ’em know when we’re ready to drop.’
‘Ain’t no-one gonna have that last burger?’
‘Nah, I’m good…’
‘Me, too.’
‘Slide it my way then… my mammy said never waste good food.’
With the US proving to be such an unreliable strategic partner, it is entirely understandable that European (NATO) countries would take more responsibility for their collective defence.
There’s a lesson in that for Australia.
What is often overlooked is that (even before its invasion of Ukraine) Russia devoted a greater proportion of its GDP to the military than any NATO country, including the United States
Secretary General Rutte, (who seems more fixed on the title “General” than “Secretary General”), and his NATO Leaders are intent on having a war – like “lets have a bar-b-q”! Problem is they can’t find either a credible adversary or a reason to commence hostilities. Like little Fauntelroys – all dressed up with ribbons and medals but nowhere to go. Meanwhile the European populace is supposed to be impressed with the magnificent displays of military hardware (“boy’s toys”) that will probably only see daylight in the pomp and ceremony of national “peace” parades.
with a bit of luck trump will be a vague memory in 2035. We can sign up to anything and just ignore it. As Trump does to the American Constitution and human rights
Australia is not and never will be a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, NATO. We do not share their interests or their threats. To agree with their defence spending Targets and engage in their little wars is to distract from our very real situation as a Pacific (in more than one sense) nation, with a very different set of concerns.
Charge the USA a high rent for their use of bases in Australia, not only Pine Gap, and but the various ports around the coast, and all the “shared” facilities. New Zealand did well with their ban on nuclear powered vessels entering their ports and withdrawal from ANZUS. Time for Australia to withdraw too
It only took till the second last sentence for the cause or central perp to be named, Putin, and his special Ukraine operation.
The author cited Fico in Slovakia, another allegedly corrupt ally of Trump, Putin and Abbott’s chum PM ‘mini Putin’ Orbán; both Fico and Orbán have been trying to block EU support for Ukraine and defy many EU directives.
Both regimes would now prefer to leave the EU, with benefits ‘banked’ or stolen, but face overwhelming public support for the EU, Ukraine and NATO vs Putin and Trump.
A recent ‘consultation’ in Hungary to deny EU &/or NATO membership for Ukraine, had lowest turnout on record and results withheld; Abbott’s chum Orbán appears to be ‘toast’ in a coming 2026 election, why?
A younger gen Oz Hungarian friend explained, it’s not just young people now, but older gens too; had enough of open corruption, Russian influence, working age emigration and economic decline compared with EU peers or competitors.
However, ageing Anglosphere ideological left, along with the US MAGA. white Christian nationalist right, support Putin, Trump, Orbán et al?
Moany Crackpot the Mad Monk reckons Labor should spend money, loads of money on defence. The man is a effing lunatic!
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/lift-defence-spend-to-show-china-that-australia-means-business-abbott-20250629-p5mb4w.html
I can’t help thinking of this quote, from the book “A Canticle For Leibowitz”:
“It was said that God, in order to test mankind which had become swelled with pride as in the time of Noah, had commanded the wise men of that age, among them the Blessed Leibowitz, to devise great engines of war such as had never before been upon the Earth, weapons of such might that they contained the very fires of Hell, and that God had suffered these magi to place the weapons in the hands of princes, and to say to each prince: “Only because the enemies have such a thing have we devised this for thee, in order that they may know that thou hast it also, and fear to strike. See to it, m’Lord, that thou fearest them as much as they shall now fear thee, that none may unleash this dread thing which we have wrought.” But the princes, putting the words of their wise men to naught, thought each to himself: If I but strike quickly enough, and in secret, I shall destroy these others in their sleep, and there will be none to fight back; the earth shall be mine.
Such was the folly of princes, and there followed the Flame Deluge.”
Some more insight into this at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7hF3WzljRY –
“Buy More U.S. Weapons”: “Daddy” Trump Pushes Military-Industrial Complex on NATO Countries
Trump works on the principle that if everyone increases spending in defence, that means that we will all buy our weaponry from the US but defence spending includes major highways, bridges, hospitals and all sorts of useful infrastructure.
We could, of course, source our weaponry from China or Russia but that may not be what Trump has in mind.
Whatever the case, Donald will be gone by the time the 5% target gets any traction but what we have to watch for is Eric Trump (the idiot son) who is thinking of standing for the US Presidency in 2028 presumably as a proxy (hand puppet?) for his Dad who will instantly assume the role of presidential adviser and lock Eric in a cupboard somewhere.
The challenge for the human race is how do we rid ourselves of the Trump family; easier said that done !