Bild: The head of the Pentagon accused NATO allies of irresponsibility

The head of the Pentagon, Pete Hegseth, speaking at a meeting of the heads of the ministries of defense of NATO countries, threatened the countries of the alliance, accusing them of irresponsibility and misunderstanding, the German tabloid Bild writes. The publication notes that Hegseth called NATO "a paper tiger and a one-way street," after which he attacked European countries with accusations.

"Despite our clear position, it seems that too many capitals of our allies still misunderstand something," he said.

According to Hegseth, the strength of the alliance lies not in committees and small flags on the tables, but in the "warriors".

"Some of the largest economies of NATO, some of our richest countries, allies, ... still believe that the era of "stowaways" continues," the head of the Pentagon stressed.

Earlier, Hegseth called on NATO to once again become a "tough military alliance" that should assume a leading role in ensuring Europe's security.

He added that in the future, the US contribution will be directly linked to how NATO countries will increase their defense spending. At the same time, he called the American draft defense budget for the 2027 fiscal year a "message to the world" that the United States is also investing in defense.

At the end of May, the German magazine Spiegel wrote that Washington intends to significantly reduce its military contribution to NATO, including the supply of key resources such as fighter jets, warships, drones and tanker aircraft. In addition, the United States will withdraw five thousand of its troops from Germany. Against this background, European countries and Canada is increasing military spending and last year increased it to $ 90 billion.