Jens Stoltenberg said he agreed with US President-Elect Donald Trump that Europe had to pay more for its defence.
In an interview with this website, Stoltenberg said, “Yes, I would like to see a bigger commitment to spend more on defence.
“That is why I have underlined the importance for our allies to reverse the trend for cuts in defence spending.”
He said that this year only five Nato allies were on track to meet the two per cent target for defence spending as a percentage of GDP.
The US financial contribution to Nato heavily outweighs that of other allies and Trump has indicated that under his presidency America may refuse to come to the aid of a Nato ally that has not “paid its fair share.”
On this, Stoltenberg said, “We in Europe have to step up our contributions and I am confident that Nato allies will do that.”
“However, I am happy to say that after years of cuts, we are now seeing a reversal of this and allies are now increasing spending on defence.”
His comments come after Germany’s defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen described Trump’s victory as a “huge shock” and asked him for reassurances on his commitment to Nato.
She said, “Of course, Europeans, as a Nato ally, know that Trump will ask what we are contributing to the alliance.”
Meanwhile, Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel said at the weekend that it is "no longer possible to rely just on the United States for our own security.”
Michel also called Donald Trump a "strange candidate" but said he understands his criticism on European defence spending.
He said, "In Europe, we haven't seen enough investments in defence over the past decades. And it's not just Belgium, in this respect. But the will is there to do more."
He added, "A stronger Europe on defence issues is more crucial than ever. Everyone understands that it is no longer possible to count just on the US for our safety. Brexit and the American vote has raised this awareness among an increasing number of European leaders."
Michel, speaking to Belgian radio, was also critical of Trump, who during the campaign called Brussels a “hellhole”.
Michel said, "Trump was a strange candidate. He chose simplistic and populist talk and had hard words for Belgium. He called Brussels a hellhole. I don't share his image of the world."
UK officials see Trump’s previous ambivalence about the Nato alliance as an opportunity to win goodwill with other EU nations. “Part of it is already happening, in that we are forward-deploying troops to the Baltics,” Crispin Blunt, Chair of the UK Parliament’s foreign affairs committee, said in an interview.
“Within the negotiations on exit terms is going to be a negotiation on common security policy. It’s an obvious common interest that we should be fully engaged.”