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US President Donald Trump has essentially declared victory in his campaign to get the Europeans to increase military spending:

July 12, 2018

President Donald Trump says he has secured commitments by NATO members to increase their defense spending commitments, after days of the U.S. leader complaining that Washington wasshouldering too much of the burden of supporting the alliance.

“They have substantially upped their commitment and now we’re very happy and have a very, very powerful, very, very strong NATO,” Trump told reporters at the close of an alliance summit in Brussels.He didn’t specify what country committed to what.

“Some are at 2 percent (of GDP), others have agreed definitely to go to 2 percent,” he said. …

“I believe in NATO,” Trump said Thursday, but added the United States was being treated very unfairly in providing for the nearly seven-decade alliance, claiming that Washington was shouldering anywhere between 70 to 90 percent of the burden of supporting NATO, which he said was unfair to U.S. taxpayers.

Trump said he could withdraw the United States from NATO without congressional approval, but said “that’s unnecessary” after the commitment from the alliance members.”There was a great collegial spirit in that room…very unified, very strong.”

“NATO is now a fine-tuned machine,” Trump boasted. https://www.voanews.com/a/trump-nato-defense-spending/4479427.html

July 12, 2018

Trump had spent his time in Brussels berating members of the military alliance for failing to spend enough of their money on defense, accusing Europe of freeloading off the U.S. and raising doubts about whether he would come to members’ defense if they were attacked.

Trump said he made his anger clear to allies on Wednesday.

“Yesterday I let them know that I was extremely unhappy with what was happening,” Trump said, adding that, in response, European countries agreed to up their spending.

Trump did not specify which countries had committed to what, and it remained unclear whether any had changed their plans. He seemed to suggest a speeded-up timeline, saying nations would be “spending at a much faster clip.”

“Some are at 2 percent, others have agreed definitely to go to 2 percent, and some are going back to get the approval, and which they will get to go to 2 percent,” he said.

NATO countries in 2014 committed to spending 2 percent of their gross domestic products on defense within a decade. NATO has estimated that only 15 members, or just over half, will meet the benchmark by 2024 based on current trends.

Macron, in his own press conference, seemed to reject Trump’s claim that NATO powers had agreed to increases beyond previous targets. He said the allies had confirmed their intention to meet the goal of 2 percent by 2024 and no more.

The emergency session came amid reports that Trump had threatened to leave the alliance if allies didn’t immediately up their spending, but officials said no explicit threat was made.

“President Trump never at any moment, either in public or in private, threatened to withdraw from NATO,” Macron said.

Trump has taken an aggressive tone during the NATO summit, questioning the value of an alliance that has defined decades of American foreign policy, torching an ally and proposing a massive increase in European defense spending.

Earlier Thursday, Trump called out U.S. allies on Twitter, saying, “Presidents have been trying unsuccessfully for years to get Germany and other rich NATO Nations to pay more toward their protection from Russia.”

He complained the United States “pays tens of Billions of Dollars too much to subsidize Europe” and demanded that member nations meet their pledge to spend 2 percent of GDP on defense, which “must ultimately go to 4%!” https://www.apnews.com/191883cbd468439499c495b0410ac3a2/Trump’s-claim-that-NATO-will-boost-defense-spending-disputed

The USA will not win by having Europe develop its military. Donald Trump and others need to consider German ambitions and biblical prophecies.

As far as German military ambitions, a reader sent me the following from German-Foreign-Policy.com

BERLIN/BRUSSELS(Own report) – In the run-up to this week’s NATO summit, the debate on the German military budget’s massive increase is continuing. Following the government’s decision to increase next year’s military budget by more than 10 percent to €42.9 billion, Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen is suggesting the possibility of a further increase to around €60 billion by 2024. While the German government is acting as if this increase is in compliance with US demands, these funds are actually needed to be able to finance the expensive national and European arms buildup projects, which include billions for a German-French jet fighter operating in concert with killer drones and drone swarms. Major projects up for confirmation at this NATO summit are also designed to enhance Germany’s national and European combat capabilities, including the establishment of a headquarters in Ulm to optimize troop transports. Berlin intends to fulfill the Bundeswehr’s training mission in Iraq not as a NATO component, but as a national mission. …

German-European Armament

Whereas the increase in Berlin’s military budget appears primarily to be in response to the pressure from the United States, it is, in fact, the result of Germany’s own wide-ranging arms buildup plans. For example, an increase in personnel, diverse expensive arms projects – ranging from the procurement of new assault rifles to the purchase of battleships – is imminent for the Bundeswehr.[6] Together with France, Germany has begun to develop new battle tanks and jet fighters including with their affiliated killer drones and drone swarms. (german-foreign-policy.com reported.[7]) At the same time, Berlin has initiated measures within the framework of the EU’s new PESCO military cooperation, while participating also in the Paris-initiated European Intervention Initiative (EII).[8] The primary objective is to build up a powerful European military, even though the German government is no longer oriented exclusively on the EU. This facilitates a militarization of the continent with the inclusion of non-EU Norway, and, above all, post-Brexit United Kingdom. 07/09/18 https://www.german-foreign-policy.com/en/news/detail/7667/

So, according to the above, the Germans were already planning to increase their defense spending, but will act as if they are doing this at the behest of the USA.

That way, Germany gives the appearance that it is not intending to be militaristic.

Consider also that the Germans are not pleased that Donald Trump keeps complaining about them:

BERLIN (AP) — The steady drum of anti-German rhetoric from the United States, one of the country’s traditionally closest friends, has people wondering whether to get ready for a messy breakup. …

“Trump at NATO Summit: It’s not just bad, it’s a catastrophe,” the influential Sueddeutsche Zeitung headlined its story online.

On the streets of Berlin, people were just shaking their heads. …

Trump’s increasingly vitriolic tone on those issues, plus his criticism of Merkel’s migration policies and his decisions to pull out of agreements dear to Germany like the deal meant to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon and the Paris climate accord, have many questioning what comes next.

“It’s an attitude that long term for the German-American relationship is anything but helpful,” lawmaker Rolf Muetzenich, a foreign affairs expert with Chancellor Angela Merkel’s junior coalition Social Democrats, told the Berliner Zeitung newspaper. https://apnews.com/f57c775f30534e78876e8ed26bb804ad

Since Donald Trump’s election, many leaders in Europe have publicly stated that Europe must defend itself. Notice:

While Trump was seen by Europeans early in his term as unpredictable, a recent focus on criticizing them has led to the possibility that for the next two and a half years and maybe longer, the U.S. will be less and less of a friend to its longtime partners in Europe. …

the arrival of Trump and his dislike of Europe, along with abandoning the Europeans on the Iran Deal and Paris climate change accord, has likely hurried up the process of its leaders looking for their own solutions to global problems.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, a frequent target of Trump attacks, said that there was no “no guarantee of perpetuity” of help from the U.S., an idea reinforced by reports last month that the Trump administration is looking at the number of soldiers it keeps in her country.

In one move that will have impacts far beyond January 2021 or January 2025, almost all of the European Union states last year joined the Permanent Structured Cooperation project, or PESCO, where they will coordinate for potential EU military operations.

It is unclear what the long-term look of PESCO will be and how it will interact with NATO, though in March 17 projects were approved including ones on “military mobility” and “cyber threats.” http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/ny-news-nato-brussels-07102018-story.html

Various ones in Europe have taken some steps and agreed to take more responsibility for defense (e.g. Europe moving towards its own army ‘Europe may soon produce its own Trumps’ and With PESCO, EU entering a ‘New Era’: An era that will NOT end well for the USA, Canada, or the UK).

Many see this as reasonable and logical.

Yet, while Europe may appear to be supportive of NATO, in the end Europe will betray the NATO members of the USA, Canada, and UK.

Consider the following prophecies:

21 And in his place shall arise a vile person, to whom they will not give the honor of royalty; but he shall come in peaceably, and seize the kingdom by intrigue. (Daniel 11:21)

39 Thus he shall act against the strongest fortresses with a foreign god, which he shall acknowledge, and advance its glory; and he shall cause them to rule over many, and divide the land for gain. … the king of the North (Daniel 11:39, 40)

23 “And in the latter time of their kingdom,
When the transgressors have reached their fullness,
A king shall arise,
Having fierce features,
Who understands sinister schemes.
24 His power shall be mighty, but not by his own power;
He shall destroy fearfully,
And shall prosper and thrive;
He shall destroy the mighty, and also the holy people.

25 “Through his cunning
He shall cause deceit to prosper under his rule;
And he shall exalt himself in his heart.
He shall destroy many in their prosperity. (Daniel 8:23-25)

The above leader is the final European King of the North Beast power. He will eliminate the USA and the UK. It is likely that he may attack under the guise of a NATO exercise and/or otherwise feign military support for the USA and the UK. Regular readers of this page realize I have been warning about this for many years.

By pushing the Europeans to spend more on their militaries, the USA and UK have been ‘sowing wind,’ but will reap the whirlwind:

6 … But the calf of Samaria shall be broken to pieces.

7 “They sow the wind,
And reap the whirlwind.
The stalk has no bud;
It shall never produce meal.
If it should produce,
Aliens would swallow it up.
8 Israel is swallowed up;
Now they are among the Gentiles
Like a vessel in which is no pleasure.
9 For they have gone up to Assyria,
Like a wild donkey alone by itself;
Ephraim has hired lovers. (Hosea 8:6-9)

The reference to ‘Samaria’ above refers to the USA (see Spiritual Samaritans: Old and New) and the reference to Ephraim above refers to the UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand (for biblically-related details, check out the article Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel). Assyria is a reference to a European power based out of central Europe (for biblically-related details, check out the article Germany in Biblical Prophecy).

Lest there be any doubt, the Bible is clear that Europe will have a ‘great army’ in the end per Daniel 11:25.

Europe will need to reorganize, but the Bible tells of at least two more reorganizations to come in Europe in Revelation 17:2-13 (see also Must the Ten Kings of Revelation 17:12 Rule over Ten Currently Existing Nations?).

Europe is moving in a military direction and Donald Trump is encouraging it. While Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton also encouraged this, their presence and rhetoric simply did not resonate with the Europeans as much as Donald Trump’s has.

While some do not believe that Europe wants to destroy the USA or is capable of rising up to take over the USA, Canada, and the UK, consider the following two portions of scripture:

5 “Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger
And the staff in whose hand is My indignation.
6 I will send him against an ungodly nation,
And against the people of My wrath
I will give him charge,
To seize the spoil, to take the prey,
And to tread them down like the mire of the streets.
7 Yet he does not mean so,
Nor does his heart think so;
But it is in his heart to destroy,
And cut off not a few nations.
8 For he says,
‘Are not my princes altogether kings?
9 Is not Calno like Carchemish?
Is not Hamath like Arpad?
Is not Samaria like Damascus?
10 As my hand has found the kingdoms of the idols,
Whose carved images excelled those of Jerusalem and Samaria,
11 As I have done to Samaria and her idols,
Shall I not do also to Jerusalem and her idols?'” (Isaiah 10:5-11)

2 Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like the feet of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. The dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority. 3 And I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and his deadly wound was healed. And all the world marveled and followed the beast. 4 So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him? (Revelation 13:2-4)

The Bible shows that the European power (called Assyria in Isaiah 10; see also Germany in Biblical Prophecy) does not think it intends to be militaristic, but that it will and will conquer. The Bible shows that the world will marvel that Europe was able to be such a military power as Europe basically had been dismissed as irrelevant.

It is quite likely that some version of NATO will survive, but that Europe will continue to use NATO as a shield from Russia, and eventually turn against the USA and its Anglo-Saxon descended allies. That will essentially be a fulfillment of the following:

1 How lonely sits the city That was full of people! How like a widow is she, Who was great among the nations! The princess among the provinces Has become a slave! 2 She weeps bitterly in the night, Her tears are on her cheeks; Among all her lovers She has none to comfort her. All her friends have dealt treacherously with her; They have become her enemies. (Lamentations 1:1-2)

That will be the end of NATO and the USA.

For those that think this could not happen to the USA, recall that Daniel 11:39 shows that a European power will destroy the ‘strongest fortresses’–which in the 21st century belong to the USA, this shows that the USA will be defeated, despite its military strength (see also USA in Prophecy: The Strongest Fortresses).

Because few politicians truly understand much about biblical prophecies, they will, basically unknowingly, take further steps that will lead to their fulfillment. This includes not only Donald Trump, but leaders in Europe and elsewhere.

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This entry was posted on Thursday, July 12th, 2018 at 5:00 am and is filed under Prophecy.

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