European countries have been forced to boost defence spending because of the “threat” from Russia, Estonia’s Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said as he wrapped up a visit to China where he called for the country to put more pressure on Moscow to end the war in Ukraine.
Advertisement
In an interview with the Post on Thursday, Tsahkna said: “President [Donald] Trump has been very clear that Europe must put skin in the game. Europe must take more responsibility.”
Trump had previously threatened to leave Nato unless other members raised defence spending.
At a summit in The Hague in June, members of the alliance agreed to raise their spending on the military to 5 per cent of gross domestic product by 2035.
Two months earlier, Estonia, one of the smallest Nato member states, passed a €2.8 billion (US$3.2 billion) bill that would see the proportion of GDP spent on the military rise from around 3.4 per cent to 5.4 per cent by 2029.
Advertisement
Tsahkna said this was a decision European countries had to make despite concerns it would mean less money to spend on civilian matters.