NATO chief warns against dividing the US and Europe or undermining their joint nuclear deterrent

BRUSSELS (AP) — The head of NATO warned member countries on Thursday against allowing a wedge to be driven between the United States and Europe, as concern grows about Washington’s commitment to its allies should Donald Trump return to office.

Faced with a war in Ukraine that is draining military and financial resources, and with a U.S. package of support held up by infighting in Congress, European leaders and senior officials have warned that Europe must invest more in its armies and new technologies and ramp up weapons production.

“I welcome that the European allies are investing more in defense, and NATO has called for that for many, many years,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters at the alliance’s Brussels headquarters, where he was chairing a meeting of the organization’s defense ministers.

“But that’s not an alternative to NATO. That is actually a way to strength NATO. And we should not pursue any path that indicates that we are trying to divide Europe from North America,” he said.

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