Bangladesh, April 18 -- In a sharp escalation of his long-standing criticism of European defense spending, US President Donald Trump publicly rebuked Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni over Romes failure to meet NATOs minimum military expenditure targets. Speaking at a joint press conference in Washington on April 17, Trump dismissed NATOs widely accepted 2% GDP benchmark for defense spending as outdated and inadequate, reiterating his call for European allies to contribute far more toward their own security.

Meloni, attempting to project progress ahead of the upcoming NATO summit, announced that Italy intends to reach the alliances 2% target. “Italy is going to the next summit of NATO, announcing that it will raise [defense spe...