U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte briefed reporters on Thursday following a NATO Defense Ministerial meeting in Brussels. Before answering questions, Hegseth told NATO members that they must increase their defense spending from the current 2% of annual GDP.

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will become on Wednesday the first member of the new Trump administration to visit NATO.

"Make no mistake, President Trump will not allow anyone to turn Uncle Sam into 'Uncle Sucker,'" Hegseth told a press conference at NATO headquarters in Brussels. Europe should be primarily responsible for defense on the European continent,

Two percent is a start, as President Trump has said, but it’s not enough, nor is 3%, nor is 4% — more like 5%,” the defense secretary said in a speech in Brussels.