The US defence secretary has told NATO to spend more on defence. Meanwhile, after the Trump-Putin call prompted fears Ukraine would be frozen out of peace talks, the Kremlin has said Kyiv will be involved “one way or another”. Listen to the Trump 100 podcast as you scroll.
Thursday 13 February 2025 17:38, UK
Pete Hegseth, the new US defence secretary, was tough on NATO allies in Brussels today, after sending “shockwaves” through the alliance with his comments on Ukraine, Sky’s security and defence editor Deborah Haynes says.
Yesterday, Hegseth said it was “unrealistic” for Ukraine to expect to return to its 2014 borders or join the NATO alliance as part of any agreement on ending the war, and that no US troops would join any security force in Ukraine.
Haynes says Hegseth defended his position, describing Donald Trump as a great deal-maker.
She says he was also very hard on America’s push under Trump to force NATO allies to spend more on defence, with the new slogan “make NATO great again”.
She says he was “really very strong” on NATO allies, including the UK, increasing spending.
Earlier, Haynes had the first question at a news conference with NATO’s secretary general Mark Rutte.
She asked if all NATO allies are united behind Ukraine on the belief that no negotiation on ending the war can take place without it – after fears that Trump and Putin’s potential negotiations would freeze Kyiv out.
“What we are all clearly united about is that we have to make sure that when talks start, Ukraine is in the best possible position,” Mark Rutte says.
You can read more on that in our post from 3.25pm.
As US defence secretary Pete Hegseth finishes taking questions, our US correspondent Mark Stone says “he represents one man, Donald Trump, and he speaks for him”.
Speaking to our presenter Matt Barbet, Stone points out that whether people will like him or loathe him, Hegseth “is not a man who has experience in the forum he now finds himself in”.
“He was a former weekend host on Fox News, he was a major in the national guard, so he has military experience in Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay, but he has never run a large organisation,” he says.
Stone says Hegseth’s messaging was “so clear”, particularly when asked if America was still committed to article five, which states that an attack on one NATO nation is effectively treated as an attack on all of NATO.
“He was quite clear that, yes, America is a NATO member and article five stands,” Stone explains.
“I think that will be very encouraging for anyone who is under any confusion about that yesterday.”
Speaking this morning, Hegseth doubled down on comments yesterday that the US cannot guarantee European security any longer, saying standing up against the Russian war machine is an “important European responsibility”.
Pete Hegseth takes questions from the media before the conclusion of his news conference at NATO HQ.
It would be a “cheap political point” to suggest all “negotiating cards are off the table”, he says in response to one asking if the US would uphold defence obligations if an ally were attacked.
“President Zelenskyy understands the realities on the ground, President Putin understands the realities on the ground,” the US defence secretary adds.
“And President Trump as a deal-maker, as a negotiator, understands those dynamics as well.”
He adds: “And the interesting part is, oftentimes while the conventional status-quo mindset or the legacy media wants to play checkers – the same checkers game we’ve been playing for decades – President Trump time and time again finds a way to play chess as a deal-maker.”
Now NATO gets the MAGA treatment…
US defence secretary Pete Hegseth says “we must make NATO great again” as he calls on allies to do “far more for Europe’s defence”.
Speaking after meeting European counterparts, Hegseth says he has been given a “clear mission” by Donald Trump to “achieve peace through strength as well as put America first”.
He explains this is being done by “reviving the warrior ethos, rebuilding our military and re-establishing deterrence”.
“NATO should pursue these goals as well,” Hegseth adds.
“NATO is a great alliance, the most successful defence alliance in history. But to endure for the future, our partners must do far more for Europe’s defence.”
‘Trump won’t allow anyone to turn Uncle Sam into Uncle Sucker’
Before taking questions, Hegseth ends with a quote from former US president Dwight Eisenhower.
Hegseth says at the end of Eisenhower’s presidency, he was concerned Europe was not shouldering enough of its own defence, “nearly making, in Eisenhower’s words, a sucker out of Uncle Sam”.
He finishes by saying Trump “will not allow anyone to turn Uncle Sam into Uncle Sucker”.
The US is committed to reinforcing NATO – but European leaders must take “primary responsibility” for defending the continent.
That’s according to defence secretary Pete Hegseth, who repeated Donald Trump’s message for the alliance to up its defence spending.
“And it is an imperative, given the strategic realities that we face, and that begins with increasing defence spending,” he says, before referring to the percentage of GDP member states are putting aside for defence.
“2% is a start, as President Trump has said. But it’s not enough. Nor is 3%, nor is 4% – more like 5% – real investment, real urgency.”
He added “we can talk all we want about values”, which are “important”, but: “You can’t shoot values. You can’t shoot flags and you can’t shoot strong speeches. There is no replacement for hard power.”
US defence secretary Pete Hegseth is speaking now in Brussels after the meeting of NATO defence ministers.
Watch live above – and we’ll bring you the latest here.
The NATO chief’s news conference has now ended, and we’re expecting US secretary of defence Pete Hegseth up next.
Just before Mark Rutte took to the stage at NATO headquarters, the UK’s defence secretary also spoke to reporters.
John Healey insisted Ukraine must be part of the negotiations.
“Negations about Ukraine cannot be done without Ukraine and Ukraine has to be part of the discussions,” said Healey.
“It is common sense. You can’t possibly see a settlement, let alone lasting, durable peace and security, unless Ukraine is bought into that, at the heart of that.”
He spoke just as Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Kyiv will be a party to talks “one way or another” (see our previous post).
As the NATO chief’s news conference continues, we’ve just had more from the Kremlin’s spokesman, who’s been busy giving updates to the media since Donald Trump revealed an agreement to begin negotiations.
Amid fears Ukraine will be frozen out of those talks, Dmitry Peskov said moments ago Kyiv will be involved “one way or another”.
But there will be a separate US-Russian channel, he said in remarks carried by state news agency TASS.
Another agency, Interfax, quoted Peskov as saying preparation for a meeting between the two leaders could take up to several months.
But both sides agree the Saudi capital of Riyadh is a suitable location, it added.
The NATO chief says Vladimir Putin needs to be in peace talks, even if they can’t know what he’s really thinking.
Asked by Ukrainian media if Putin really wants to end the war, as Donald Trump said yesterday, Mark Rutte says he doesn’t know “what exactly is in Putin’s mind”.
“So of course, neither can you,” he says.
He describes Putin as a “strong negotiator” and “very unpredictable”.
“But in the end, if we want to get to a peace deal, we need him there, because he was the one starting this war of aggression against your country,” he adds.
Our security and defence editor Deborah Haynes has the first question for NATO’s secretary general.
She asks if all NATO allies are united behind Ukraine on the belief that no negotiation on ending the war can take place without it – after fears that Trump and Putin’s potential negotiations would freeze Kyiv out.
“What we are all clearly united about is that we have to make sure that when talks start, Ukraine is in the best possible position,” Mark Rutte says.
“Ukraine will be involved in any way whatsoever, and at the same time, we are also in agreement that an outcome has to be doable.
“Whenever the outcome is there, we have to make sure that Putin will not try to cap another square mile or kilometre of Ukraine.”
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