Raise military spending or start the language lessons, Mark Rutte has told the European Parliament
European members in NATO should either drastically increase their military spending or start studying Russian, the US-led blocโs new secretary-general, Mark Rutte, has claimed, in a warning to EU lawmakers.
Rutteโs remarks came during a question and answer period at the end of the joint meeting of the European Parliamentโs Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET) and the Subcommittee on Security and Defence (SEDE) on Monday.
While two thirds of NATO members are now meeting the blocโs 2014 target of spending 2% of their gross domestic product (GDP) on the military, it is not enough to protect them from Moscow, Rutte alleged.
โWe are safe now, but not in 4-5 years,โ Rutte said. โSo, if you donโt do it, get out your Russian language courses or go to New Zealand. Or decide now to spend more.โ
๐ด :VIDEO
— Ekrem H. Krasniqi (@E_H_Krasniqi) January 13, 2025
If (European) NATO countries donโt spend more on defence then โGET OUT YOUR RUSSIAN LANGUAGE COURSES or GO TO NEW ZEALAND,"
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte says in a debate with members of the European Parliament ๐ pic.twitter.com/NbWKniU8Jt
