US Diplomat Warns Europe of Defence Spending Cuts

A senior US diplomat has warned of a “dangerous” gulf emerging between US and European defence spending. Samantha Power, the US ambassador to the United Nations, has appealed to European governments to spend more.

Though Britain currently meets the Nato defence spending target, there is no commitment to honour it beyond the general election.

The ambassador said she had flown to Brussels to encourage the leaders of the Nato countries to meet the defence spending target of 2% of GDP. Ms Power said that in “most cases”defence spending in Europe was shrinking, despite a growth in defence threats.

She warned:“The number of missions that require advanced militaries to contribute around the world is growing not shrinking”.

The UK government is committed to the 2% spending target until the end of this Parliament, but there has been no commitment beyond that from either the Conservatives or Labour.

Britain is one of the few countries to meet the target, Ms Power said.

She added: “The United Kingdom is exceptional - has been a staunch Nato ally and has stepped up - whether on Isil (Islamic State) or on Ebola or in Afghanistan”. But the ambassador warned: “We’re looking at an awful lot of threats and many of those threats are migrating into Europe, at least in the form of Isil, and yet we haven’t seen European defence spending reach the 2% of GDP level that European leaders committed to.”

On Monday the Royal United Services Institute (Rusi) said it was inevitable that the UK’s defence spending would drop below the 2% target.

The defence think tank warned that up to 30,000 more military personnel could lose their jobs by 2020, whatever the outcome of the general election.

The warning followed concerns from the head of the US Army over the impact of spending cuts on the UK’s armed forces.

Chief of Staff General Raymond Odierno voiced his reservations about the falling proportion of the UK’s national wealth being spent on the military.