Trump repeats NATO members should spend 5% of GDP on defense

WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump reiterated Friday that North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) member states should spend 5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) on defense, while saying the United States should not. Trump made the remarks during a press availability as he is preparing to attend a NATO summit in The Hague, the Netherlands, next week, where the defense spending target is expected to figure prominently. “I don’t think we should, but I think they should,” he said, responding to a question about the defense spending target that he proposed. “We’ve been supporting NATO so long. In many cases, I believe … almost paying 100 percent of the cost. So I don’t think we should, but I think that the NATO countries should absolutely,” he added. The U.S. spent about 3.4 percent of its GDP on defense last year. Asked about Spain’s stance against the target, Trump said that NATO will have to deal with the country. “Spain has been a very low payer,” he said. “They were either good negotiators or they weren’t doing the right thing. I mean I think Spain has to pay what everybo

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