Trump's statements forcing EU countries, Turkiye explore "defense autonomy" - media

U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump's statement that the U.S. will not protect Allies from Russian aggression if they fail to achieve defense spending at the level of 2% of GDP forces Europe and Türkiye to seriously consider "defense autonomy".

This is stated in the article posted by The National Interest, as seen by Ukrinform.

“The significance of Turkey-U.S. relations, with direct implications for Turkey-EU relations, is further highlighted by recent stark declarations from Donald Trump, who stated that if NATO member states do not meet the two percent GDP defense spending target, the United States will not defend them from Russian aggression. This has underscored the urgent need for Europe and Turkey to start thinking about defense autonomy," the report reads.

It is also noted that Washington's and Ankara's goals in confronting Russian aggression against Ukraine remain in line.

"In the wake of the intensified Russian aggression in Ukraine, the strategic interests of the United States and Turkey in opposing Russian expansionist objectives, particularly along the Black Sea coast, have aligned to some extent. Turkey has thus bolstered Ukraine's defense capabilities, working with other NATO nations," the article says.

It is also indicated that against the backdrop of the deterioration of Turkish-American relations in recent years, Ankara’s ties with Moscow have improved and strengthened, but in fact "the reality is more complex." In this context, it is important to distinguish the current directions of Türkiye's foreign and security policy. Türkiye “has started to broaden its perspective and adopted a nuanced approach to foreign policy that primarily serves its interests, as evidenced by its continued relations with Russia,” the article reads, adding that it's equally true that pragmatism keeps Türkiye “anchored in the Atlantic alliance and the U.S.-led security architecture simply because there is no alternative capable of offering Ankara the same level of strategic security that NATO, Europe, and the United States provide.”

According to the article’s author, both Türkiye and the USA see each other as key partners in the field of security, not only within the framework of NATO, but also in relation to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, there is an ongoing discussion in diplomatic circles of European countries needing to take into account the possibility of a "decrease in commitment" to NATO on the part of the United States should Donald Trump win the upcoming presidential election.