# Strategic autonomy

NATO’s Rutte Tells Europe: Without the U.S. You Can’t Defend Yourselves — and Good Luck Raising Arms

NATO secretary‑general Mark Rutte told European lawmakers that, absent U.S. support, Europe cannot defend itself and would need sharply higher defence spending and the loss of the American nuclear umbrella. His comments, made amid rows over Greenland and Trump’s Afghanistan remarks, have intensified debate over transatlantic ties and European strategic autonomy.