Authored by Guy Birchall via The Epoch Times,
Newly appointed British Defence Secretary Wes Streeting said on July 26 that Europe will one day thank U.S. President Donald Trump for “shaking us out of our complacency” on defense spending.
Speaking to British broadcaster Sky News, Streeting said that he genuinely believes “when this period of history is written, Europe will thank President Trump for shaking us out of our complacency and forcing us to stand on our own two feet and end the period of overreliance on the United States for defense.”
Former Health Secretary Streeting was appointed to the defense role on July 20 by the new British Prime Minister Andy Burnham after he reshuffled the Cabinet following the resignation of his predecessor Keir Starmer.
“What he’s said about Europe isn’t unique to President Trump, the MAGA movement or the Republican Party. This has been a long-standing grain of U.S. frustration with Europe under Democratic and Republican presidents,” Streeting said, adding that “in the world we live in, it is right that we can act to secure ourselves.”
Trump has repeatedly called on the UK and other European countries to spend more on defense and become less reliant on the United States for the continent’s security.
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