US will no longer be sole guarantor of European security – Hegseth

The United States will not be the only guarantor of European security anymore, US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said on April 23, Report informs via Sputnik International.

“The time of the United States to be a sole guarantor of European security has passed,” Hegseth said at the US Army War College.

He pointed out that Europe has to step up and play a leading role in its security. Hegseth also repeated Washington’s call to its European allies to increase their defense spending.

“We have made the same call to our allies. Two percent [defense spending] is not enough considering the threat you face,” he said.

He emphasized that Poland and some other countries had already made a commitment to spend 5% of their GDP on defense, and urged others to do the same.