The Secretary General of NATO Jens Stoltenberg warned Europe today Wednesday not to attempt to act autonomously in defense matters, in the wake of Donald Trump’s statement that sparked a new debate on whether the Old Continent can continue to rely on US protection.

“The European Union cannot defend Europe. 80% of NATO defense spending come from non-EU NATO allies,” Stoltenberg said in an interview with Reuters.

He assessed that it is clear that Europe’s security does not only depend on Europe itself but also on other NATO members such as USA, Canada, Turkey, Norway and Iceland.

“If you just look at the map, it’s obvious that all these countries, non-EU allies, it is of vital importance for the protection of Europe”, stressed the g.c. of the North Atlantic Alliance.

He added that “any attempt to disconnect Europe from North America will also divide Europe.” Many European states, especially in Eastern Europe, they see the US as the primary guarantor of security and would oppose any move to change that.

Trump, former US president and Republican candidate in this year’s US presidential election, drew sharp criticism from Western leaders after he said that the US they will not defend their NATO allies who don’t spend enough on defense, with the tycoon even going so far as to encourage Russia to attack these US-allied countries.

Many European politicians said this position by Trump was a wake-up call, noting that this should act as a motivation for Europe to do more to be able to defend herself.

Stoltenberg said European NATO members needed to do more to develop defense capabilities and were doing so. But he made it clear that this must happen in a transatlantic context.

Earlier today, he said European allies would invest $380 billion in defense this year, raising spending to around 2% of total GDP in 2024, compared to 1.85% in 2023.

Specifically, he stated at a press conference in Brussels that 18 of the 31 NATO member countries will achieve the goal of 2% of their Gross Domestic Product for defense spending in 2024.

“I expect 18 allies to spend 2% of their GDP on defense this year,” he said, adding that total military spending is set to record another record year this year as Russia’s war against Ukraine enters its third year. An “unprecedented” 11 percent increase in defense spending by NATO countries was recorded last year, it said.

In his interview with Reuters, the head of NATO also invited the US House of Representatives to approve a “vital” military aid package billions of dollars for Ukraine, telling US lawmakers that China would be emboldened if Russia won the war against Ukraine.

“I am counting on the House of Representatives to agree to support Ukraine, because this is not charity. This is an investment in our own security,” he said.

Stoltenberg stressed that Europe and Canada are also stepping up aid to Ukraine, noting that their combined economic and military aid to Kiev is greater than that provided by the US.

However, he said, US financial assistance “remains vital”.

“If President Putin wins in Ukraine, it will send a message to him and other authoritarian leaders that they get what they want by using military force. It will make the world more dangerous (and) us more vulnerable”he warned.

“Today it’s Ukraine, tomorrow it could be Taiwan. So Beijing and China are closely monitoring what is happening in Ukraine.”

Yesterday, the Democratic-led US Senate approved a $95.34 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, amid growing doubts about the bill’s fate in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. .

The approval of the Parliament is also necessary before Democratic President Joe Biden could sign it into law.