US to NATO: We plan to do less and Europe must be able to defend itself

(Grok AI illustration)

COGwriter

The Trump Administration continues to push the Europeans for more military spending:

Trump’s NATO pressure campaign continues as summit begins

July 7, 2026

Just days before his arrival in Turkey for the annual NATO summit, President Trump made it clear that in his mind, he and the world’s largest defense alliance are not on good terms.

“The United States spends more money on NATO than any other country, by far, to protect them, without getting any benefit from so doing,” he posted on social media on July 2, adding, “Ridiculous!”

And so his arrival in Ankara kicks off another potentially tense meeting between the leader of the alliance’s key superpower and the other member nations, who have watched him criticize the organization for a decade. …

As thirty-two-member countries gather this week, Western defense industry experts say they are holding their breath and praying nothing interesting actually happens.

It is likely to be less substantive than previous summits, according to Max Bergmann, director of the Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a bipartisan, nonprofit think tank in Washington, D.C. …

The idea of NATO 3.0 comes from the Pentagon – where U.S. military leadership under Trump wants Europe to take responsibility for its own security and rely less on the United States.

“The approach from the policy side within the Pentagon is to dramatically change how NATO is structured, and really shift the responsibility for defending Europe to Europe, and to pull US forces back and pull US forces out. The goal of the NATO Secretary General is to stop that,” Bergmann said.

For the Trump administration, meanwhile, the summit will be another opportunity to continue pressuring other nations regarding their defense spending. https://www.npr.org/2026/07/07/nx-s1-5884055/trumps-nato-pressure-campaign-continues-as-summit-begins

EU Faces Security Collapse if US Cuts Military Presence – Reports

July 7, 2026

Just on the eve of the annual NATO summit, and as President Trump is en route to attend the Ankara-hosted meeting, Washington has reaffirmed its vision of withdrawing from NATO leadership in order to allow other countries to shoulder the collective defense burden.

America’s ambassador to the alliance told CNBC on Monday that pressuring allies to spend more – which has created tension among some European allies – reflects necessary “growing pains” rather than a crisis,

“The target is that Europe takes over the conventional defense of the European continent,” Ambassador Matthew Whitaker stated. That’s when he emphasized: “We’re not going away, we’re just doing less.“

“I see these as just the challenges that we’ve worked through before,” he continued, while commenting that there are still “laggards” which still have to reach higher and higher commitments to catch up. https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/nato-summit-braces-trump-ambassador-warns-allies-us-not-going-away-just-doing-less

This Spring Prime Minister of Poland has voiced concerns about the NATO security alliance:

The greatest threat to the transatlantic community are not its external enemies, but the ongoing disintegration of our alliance. We must all do what it takes to reverse this disastrous trend.

— Donald Tusk (@donaldtusk) May 2, 2026

In December 2025, we produced the following NATO related video:

14:59

USA to leave NATO?

There are bills being promoted by US politicians in both the US Senate and the US House of Representatives to have the USA leave NATO alliance by 2027. There is also the new National Security Strategy report from the Trump Administration which looks to change NATO. Europe is offended, but is preparing for this to take place. How so? By taking economic (expanding trade relations) and military (by increased spending and added troops) steps And it is the military preparations by Europe that should most concern the United States. Dr. Thiel points out how the fragmented state of the European Union will lead to the reorganization of Europe (Revelation 17:12-13) which will ultimately bring about the rise of the prophesied King of the North (Daniel 11:39-43). Could a blitzkrieg type of an attack under the guise of a NATO-type exercise lead to the conquering of the USA? Scriptures quoted by Dr. Thiel point out that when this reorganization of Europe takes place the destruction and enslavement of the United States of America, the nation with the strongest fortresses, is not far behind. Daniel 8:23 tells us this King of the North understands “sinister schemes”. Could one of those sinister schemes be the destruction of the United States? Are there other scriptures that confirm this destruction? Who is Assyria? Who is Samaria? Who is Ephraim? The answer is surprising but makes clear many scriptures that were sealed until the time of the end. The answer to the identity of Assyria, Samaria and Ephraim as referred to by the prophets Isaiah and Hosea is provided by Dr. Thiel in this video. Watch this video as Dr. Thiel shines the light of Biblical prophecy on the future of the United States of America and its British descended allies. Listen as Dr. Thiel explains the scriptures that prophesy the end of the United States by its friends, such as Lamentations 1:1-2. The time is getting closer.

Here is a link to our video: USA to leave NATO?

Europeans are more and more concerned that the USA will no longer be a reliable defender of European security.

Notice the following:

NATO chief says Europeans have ‘gotten the message’ from Trump on defence

4 May 2026

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte says European leaders have “gotten the message” after United States President Donald Trump announced plans to withdraw 5,000 soldiers from Germany.

Trump has grown increasingly frustrated with NATO allies,

“European leaders have gotten the message. They heard the message loud and clear,” Rutte said before a European Political Community meeting in Armenia.

“Europeans are stepping up, a bigger role for Europe and a stronger NATO,” …

Increased defence spending

Many European countries have committed to ramping up defence spending in the face of fears over Trump’s commitment to NATO and Russia’s assault on Ukraine – a push underscored by several leaders in the Armenian capital.

“Europeans are taking their destiny into their own hands, increasing their defence and security spending, and building their own common solutions,” French President Emmanuel Macron said.

“We have to step up our military capabilities to be able to defend and protect ourselves,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told reporters. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/5/4/nato-chief-says-europeans-have-gotten-the-message-from-trump-on-defence

What is the message?

European leaders are hearing that they must spend more on defense and the USA wants them to always support USA foreign policy. Notice the following which supports that view:

Kallas: US troop withdrawal demands stronger Europe

4 May 2026

The European Union’s high representative for foreign policy, Kaja Kallas, said Monday that the U.S. Department of Defense’s announcement that it will withdraw 5,000 American troops from bases in Germany is “surprising,” but underscores that Europe “needs to do more to truly strengthen NATO’s European pillar.” https://efe.com/english/latest-news/2026-05-04/kallas-nato-european-pillar-us-withdrawal/

So, what’s next?

Well, the USA is scaring the Europeans into deciding that they must become a more serious military power, one independent of the USA.

The more the Europeans spend on their militaries, the more they will be emboldened to be independent of the United States.

The USA is increasingly isolating itself. The following prophecy is getting closer to being fulfilled:

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)

The USA has been great among the nations.

Yet, is has been pushing NATO and other allies away from it, while pushing them to become militaristic, consistent with biblical prophecies such as Lamentations 1:1-2.