Dutch ambassador speaks for Europe ramping up its defense spending

Dutch ambassador to Romania Willemijn van Haaften told Romanian national broadcaster TVR in an interview that Europe is at the heart of NATO and there is no reason why the allied countries should not ramp up their defense and thus convince the Russian Federation that attacking the eastern flank would be a very bad idea.

Let's hope for the best and prepare for the worst. And I think that Europe is truly at the heart of the NATO alliance. That is, let's face it: we have the largest overall population. The European GDP accounts for the largest share within the NATO alliance, therefore we should have confidence in ourselves. There is no reason why we shouldn't strengthen our defense and deterrence capability and this way convince Mr. Putin that attacking the eastern flank would be a very bad idea, because if he does, he will have the entire Alliance standing up to him, Willemijn van Haaften said, according to the TVR Info website.

The Dutch ambassador said that the time has come for Europe to effectively strengthen its defense, highlighting also the need for cooperation, because with the missiles and warfare technology of today, the difference between a missile attack on Lithuania and one on the Netherlands could be of just five minutes.

"So, we are eastern flank too. We should consider this, it brings to the fore the need for cooperation, and we are already working on that," the Dutch diplomat declared.