- According to Hanno Pevkur, the United States should defend NATO allies.
- According to Estonian intelligence, European countries are not yet able to face Russia on their own.
- Minister Pevkur believes in the commitments of the US and the long-term cohesion of NATO.
The United States will defend its allies in the North Atlantic Alliance (NATO) in the event of an attack by Russia, he declared Minister of Defense of Estonia Hanno Pevkur. At the same time, he pointed out that Europe is not yet ready to stand up to Moscow alone. He made this statement on Thursday during his visit to Lithuania, reports TASR.
Estonian intelligence warned in February that neighboring Russia is already stockpiling munitions with the intention of using them in future conflicts after the end of the war in Ukraine. US President Donald At the same time, Trump has been critical of NATO in the past period, which according to him did not sufficiently help the United States in its war against Iran. He is also in dispute with other members of the alliance for control of Greenland. Several analysts therefore fear whether Washington will come to the aid of other NATO members in the event of an attack.
However, Pevkur does not doubt the commitment of the US to its commitments to NATO. “Yes, I trust the United States, and yes, I trust all of our allies,” he said on Thursday during a visit to the Lithuanian capital Vilnius. According to him, the United States needs Europe for its armed forces as much as Europe needs the United States. For this reason, therefore, he does not believe that NATO will break up.
He compared the current disputes within the alliance to a long marriage. “It’s impossible for a 50-year union to be just an idyll. There will always be disagreements and problems, and they need to be dealt with.” emphasized the Estonian Minister of Defense, according to whom Europe is not yet sufficiently strong militarily. “Are we where we want to be? No,” he said. “We all (in NATO) need to invest more in defense,” he declared.
Pevkur believes that NATO should now focus on ending the war in Iran so that the United States can fully focus on the war in Ukraine. “It remains a priority for our region,” he recalled.
