this post was submitted on 12 Dec 2024
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Summary

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte warned that the alliance must adopt a “wartime mindset” to prepare for long-term confrontation with Russia.

Speaking in Brussels, he urged members to increase defense spending beyond the 2% GDP target, noting that only 23 of 32 members currently meet it.

Rutte emphasized boosting defense production, addressing cyber threats, and countering China’s military buildup and actions toward Taiwan.

His remarks come as Donald Trump threatens to withhold defense support from NATO members failing to meet spending commitments, raising concerns about alliance unity.

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[–] NegativeLookBehind 72 points 6 days ago (2 children)

Should have done that a few years ago

[–] [email protected] 34 points 6 days ago (1 children)

I agree, but better late than never. And absolutely better now than when putin starts bombing some civilians in a NATO country.

[–] NegativeLookBehind 22 points 6 days ago (3 children)

Finland seems to be the only member of NATO who hasn't forgotten who their neighbors are. But yes, better late than never.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 5 days ago (1 children)

As an Estonian, I obviously know some jokes about Finns. But I won't go into anything weird or racist because my favourite one is actually relevant and not racist, but more like historic satire.

It's the Winter War. Russians in Finnish territory make camp. Then a voice from the nearby forest yells: "I'm all alone, come and get me!"

The Russian commanders discuss for a moment and agree: Better not send just one man, or the Finn might best him. So they send ten.

Half an hour later, nobody is back, but they again hear the Finn: "I'm still alone, come and get me!". They send a hundred, thinking this will surely be enough.

Finally, the commanders get really irritated to hear the Finn's voice again, so they send a thousand, and this time one man comes back, all bloody and ragged: "Don't listen to that lying piece of shit! There's two of them!"

[–] NegativeLookBehind 7 points 5 days ago

I love this joke! Thanks for sharing

[–] [email protected] 14 points 6 days ago

Finland isn't the only one. Poland, Baltic states remember well. Even more so than Finland. And that being said as a Finn. Their economy is just either smaller or they have a longer way to go to catch up.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

This is Poland erasure.

Edit: and also the Baltics

[–] [email protected] 1 points 4 days ago

Like when the war started?

[–] [email protected] 22 points 5 days ago (7 children)

Can't say I'm a military analyst but if Russia can't take over Ukraine why should NATO be worried, 2% or otherwise? Russia's ongoing sabotage against NATO countries is a job for intelligence and policing. Greasing the palms of the arms industry won't touch that.

[–] [email protected] 23 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Because the industrial base for producing critical things like ammunition is nearly nonexistent. Despite USA and European arms support Ukraine has been permanently shell-starved for the entire course of the war. Three years later, even after spinning up some new production, Ukraine's allies still don't make enough shells to get anywhere close to 1:1 with what the Russians fire at them (and that was before North Korea started supplying the Russians)

The invasion of Ukraine has made it crystal clear that Europe's military industrial base is utterly incapable of responding to an actual peer conflict on their own soil, let alone providing a deterrent to wars of expansion outside of it. It would be foolish not to be investing in sovereign military capability in today's world.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (1 children)

You're talking like the whole of Europe has been pouring everything it's got into the war in Ukraine, which it hasn't even come close to.

I think Czechia is the only country who has not immediately replenished military aid given to Ukraine. UK arms manufacturers continue to supply the international market. Meanwhile Russia is pulling tanks out of museums, begging from impoverished North Korea and has spent nearly three years capturing 20% of a non-NATO country below Egypt and Australia in military rankings.

The issue here is not that Europe is vulnerable to Russia, it's that there is a renewed American mandate to cut spending on other people's wars and deterrents and they are wondering whether Europe should cough up more money. Mark Rutte licks Trump's anus and is making what he thinks are the right sounds. Fair enough. On the flipside European lawmakers are going to be wondering whether Donald will go back to keeping intelligence documents in his bathroom, whether US military bases in their countries are really worth it and whether they want much to do with the US at all as gets more and more nutty.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 4 days ago

Other countries should be jumping at the opportunity to shed their american shackles.

[–] GreenKnight23 13 points 5 days ago (4 children)

instead of war let's use critical weather as an analogy.

it's getting colder, and there's 16 extra feet of snow on the local mountain range than usual.

do you:

a) prepare for a long hard winter by increasing your grocery budget by 25%

b) do nothing because the snow is up there and you haven't seen more than 4 ft id snow in 45 years.

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[–] [email protected] 6 points 4 days ago

Agreed in part. We should absolutely continue to support Ukraine in any/all ways possible against Russia. However Russia doesn't have the economy to really do much to the rest of Europe. Rubles are going to be worth more as toilet paper than money in the next few years.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 5 days ago (1 children)

If you put aside the argument that Russia isn't capable of running over Ukraine, cities are still laid to waste, people are getting killed...

[–] [email protected] 2 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Why put that aside? It was the whole point of their invasion.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 5 days ago (2 children)

Wether or not Russia is capable of taking over Ukraine, lives are lost in Ukraine. That's a reason to be worried. You can laugh at Russia's failure to carry out the task they put before themselves, but in the end people are suffering.

The whole point of their operation wasn't to "not be capable to take over Ukraine", it was "(to be capable) to take over Ukraine".

I think you misunderstood me.

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[–] jimmy90 5 points 5 days ago

does intelligence count as defense spending?

[–] chiliedogg 1 points 4 days ago

Ukraine is receiving a TON of military aid, a lot of which is about the cease.

Trump is Putin's pet, and the new US National Intelligence director is a Russian asset. Ukraine is about to be railroaded.

[–] Maalus 5 points 5 days ago (5 children)

Because Russia doesn't exist in a vacuum. Also it is better to be prepared and not need it, rather than not be prepared and lose a large portion of the population, industry, potentially getting genocided away etc.

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[–] [email protected] 3 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

Cold wartime, maybe. For sure we're not at the "assess tolerable casualty percentage" stage of conflict yet, which is what that means to me.

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