Lammy Backs Trump's NATO Spending Challenge

Britain’s foreign minister David Lammy supports U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's call for NATO members to boost defense spending beyond 2%. While previously critical of Trump, Lammy has softened his stance and expressed strong support for Ukraine's NATO membership, emphasizing current geopolitical challenges.

Britain's foreign minister, David Lammy, has voiced support for U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's challenge to NATO members to increase their defense spending. Speaking to Reuters on Wednesday, Lammy agreed that the alliance should surpass its 2% economic output target for defense, acknowledging the need due to more challenging times.

Despite previously criticizing Trump, Lammy, whose Labour Party took government in July, has now softened his tone, finding possible common ground with the incoming president. At a NATO foreign ministers' meeting in Brussels, Lammy noted that Britain aims to increase its spending to 2.5% and advocates for a collective boost to 3%.

On the matter of Ukraine, Lammy reaffirmed strong UK support for its NATO family aspiration, dismissing any notion of removing Ukrainian NATO membership prospects. He also highlighted doubts over Russian President Vladimir Putin's readiness to negotiate.

(With inputs from agencies.)