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THE HAGUE

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on Wednesday said he is "optimistic" that member states will agree on a new defense spending target of 5% of GDP, meeting the US expectations for a stronger European contribution to collective defense.

Speaking ahead of a NATO leaders' meeting in The Hague, Rutte said that although the financial commitment would be politically challenging for many countries, the threat from Russia and broader global instability leaves no alternative.

Rutte underlined that the US remains fully committed to NATO and Article 5, while noting that Canada and European allies are expected to increase their defense budgets to match the level of US contributions.

"There is absolute clarity that the United States is totally committed to NATO, totally committed to Article Five. And yes, there is also an expectation, which will be fulfilled today, that the Canadians and the Europeans will speed up their spending, making sure that we are able to defend ourselves against the Russians and others," he said.

Asked whether concerns raised by Spain could derail an agreement at the summit, Rutte dismissed the suggestion.

Rutte also addressed a recent controversy involving a private text message he sent, which was later made public by US President Donald Trump. He said he had no objection to its release and described it as "a statement of fact."

Commenting on recent US military action targeting Iran's nuclear facilities, Rutte said the operation was "crucial" to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear capabilities.

"The 14 huge bombs dropped on the nuclear facility of Iran; I think this was crucial to really do everything possible to take out the nuclear capability of Iranians, which NATO has always said Iran should not get its hands on."