US President Donald Trump intends to meet with leaders of Indo-Pacific countries during the NATO summit in the Netherlands this week. This is reported by UNN with reference to Nikkei.
Details
As learned from Nikkei materials, Trump wants to meet with the leaders of Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand during the NATO summit scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday in the Netherlands.
The event is expected to take place in The Hague.
The meeting, which will tentatively take place in The Hague, will be attended by Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte
At the same time, Nikkei reports that "the new South Korean President Lee Jae-myung was also expected to attend the summit, but his office announced on Sunday that the president had decided not to participate, citing urgent domestic issues and 'uncertainty' caused by the conflict in the Middle East."
According to the publication, Trump views this meeting as an opportunity for the US and European NATO members to expand security cooperation, as Russia and China pose a growing threat in areas such as cyberspace and space development.
Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand are part of the "IP4" – NATO's partner countries in the Indo-Pacific region.
Participants are expected to commit to strengthening coordination in combating issues spanning various continents and discuss the direction in which this cooperation should develop.
In addition, according to the publication, "NATO is also showing significant interest in cooperating with the defense industries of Japan, Australia, and South Korea."
In particular, the alliance recently told Japan about its desire to continue cooperation on technologies used in drones. As emphasized in the article, "drones have become a primary means of attack for both sides in Russia's war against Ukraine."
Defense spending
The summit will also discuss the level of military expenditures of member countries.
"NATO will discuss raising defense spending targets for member countries – a demand Trump has been making for years," Nikkei writes.
According to informed sources, "these countries currently aim to spend more than 2% of their gross domestic product."
National leaders are expected to agree to raise the defense spending target to 3.5% of GDP, while also providing an additional 1.5 percentage points for a broader definition of defense, such as infrastructure needed in crisis situations – bringing the total to 5%
Nikkei also quotes a Pentagon source: "Allies in Asia will also have to increase their defense spending to 5% of GDP."
Trump "may demand increased defense spending from Japan, South Korea, and others at a special meeting."