Poll idea: Ask the parents of US soldiers what they think of their sons defending countries that don't meet their defense obligations.....wonder what they think of that?
The NY Times has just posted this:
Only four countries met the target in 2017, according to NATO — the U.S. at 3.57%, Britain at 2.1% percent, Greece at 2.38% and Estonia at 2.1%. This year, Latvia is likely to achieve the 2% target, according to NATO estimates.NATO we have a "dues" problem!
Poland, Romania and Lithuania are likely to meet the goal soon. But many of NATO’s biggest countries still fall short. Germany, with the second-biggest economy in the alliance, spends 1.24% of its GDP on its armed forces. France spends 1.81% and Turkey spends 1.68%.
Excluding the U.S., total military spending by NATO members has increased modestly in recent years, from $272 billion in 2014 to an estimated $312 billion this year — or less than half the U.S. defense budget. But only 16 allies are “on track” to meet the 2% target by 2024, according to Kay Bailey Hutchison, the U.S. ambassador to NATO and a Trump appointee.
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