Amb. Bill White to Newsmax: Trump Boosted NATO by $1 Trillion

Thanks to President Donald Trump, $1 trillion has been raised "to step up the defense for NATO," U.S. Ambassador to Belgium Bill White told Newsmax on Thursday.

White, appearing on " Wake Up America " with co-hosts Marc Lotter and Charly Arnolt, credited Trump with pushing European allies to shoulder more of the financial burden for their own defense.

"If it wasn't for President Trump, there would not be a new trillion dollars right now," White said. "I call it the Trump trillion."

White's comments came after Politico reported the Trump administration is excluding several major allies from a planned meeting in Poland focused on NATO's future, including the United Kingdom, France, and the Baltic states.

Asked what message the move sends to some of America's closest allies, White emphasized Trump's push for increased NATO defense spending rather than addressing the invitations directly.

"President Trump wants NATO to be strong," White said. "Europe has to be strong. NATO has to be strong, and together we'll be strong, stronger together."

NATO members agreed at the 2025 summit in The Hague to increase defense and security-related investment to 5% of gross domestic product by 2035, including at least 3.5% for core defense requirements and up to 1.5% for other defense and security spending.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has also credited Trump with driving higher spending.

During a June White House visit, Rutte presented figures showing European allies and Canada had added more than $1 trillion in cumulative core defense spending since 2016.

White said Belgium, a founding NATO member and home to the alliance's headquarters, is among the countries increasing defense expenditures.

"Other countries need to step it up," White said.

Politico reported the Pentagon-led working group has previously included Norway, Sweden, Finland, Poland, Germany, and the Netherlands.

A diplomat from one participating nation said the smaller group is intended to develop ideas that can later be tested by the full alliance, rather than divide NATO.

White's interview also touched on security concerns in Belgium following attacks on Jewish sites that Belgian authorities have linked to calls from Iran to target Jewish and Israeli interests.

"We have a very serious threat here in Europe from Iranian forces," White said, adding that U.S. officials are working closely with Belgian authorities.

White said the U.S. Embassy is on "very high alert" and praised Belgian authorities for deploying security to protect Jewish neighborhoods and synagogues.

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