US and UK defense chiefs discuss redistribution of roles in NATO — Anadolu Agency

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and his British counterpart Wes Streeting held a meeting at the Pentagon in Washington on Thursday. The sides discussed defense burden-sharing in NATO, defense spending and military cooperation, Anadolu Agency reports.

A greater role for Europe

Streeting’s visit was his first trip to Washington since taking office in July. The meeting took place amid calls from the administration of US President Donald Trump for European allies to assume greater responsibility for the continent’s conventional defense.

Hegseth said that the long-standing relationship between Washington and London must evolve in response to new threats rather than rely solely on historical ties. He also outlined the concept of “NATO 3.0,” under which European members of the Alliance should take on greater responsibility for Europe’s conventional defense.

According to Hegseth, this approach could allow the United States to reduce its military presence on the continent and direct resources to other regions, including the Pacific.

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Spending and defense production

Streeting supported strengthening Europe’s role in its own defense and said that the United Kingdom is ready to more actively defend Europe and its interests. He thanked Trump for encouraging European countries to take their defense commitments more seriously.

The British representative said that the country is undertaking the largest sustained increase in defense spending since the end of the Cold War. At the same time, he stressed that not only the scale of investment matters, but also directing it toward effective capabilities and faster deployment of defense technologies.

For his part, Hegseth emphasized the need to increase defense production in the United States together with allies, strengthen manufacturing capacity and supply chains.