German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said Berlin is prepared to take on a bigger leadership role in NATO ahead of a meeting of alliance foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden.
Speaking in Berlin before traveling to the Swedish port city, Wadephul said Germany wants a new burden-sharing arrangement that better reflects the economic and military capabilities of Germany and Europe. “Germany is accepting its leadership responsibility,” he said, adding that NATO should be stronger and that Europe should play a greater role.
Wadephul called for deeper defense cooperation to pool industrial capabilities and said Germany aims to reach NATO’s long-term spending target. He said Berlin will move quickly to strengthen its military capacities and meet the alliance’s goals.
At the 2025 NATO summit, allies agreed that member states should invest at least 3.5% of GDP in direct defense spending, with an additional 1.5% earmarked for defense-related items such as infrastructure, bringing the total target to 5% annually by 2035.
This gathering is the first meeting of NATO foreign ministers to be held in Sweden since the country joined the alliance just over two years ago.
Wadephul also said he plans to table concrete proposals on how NATO can continue to support Ukraine’s defense, and how the alliance could benefit from the Ukrainian defense sector’s recent achievements. The German minister emphasized continued, strong support for Ukraine as a priority.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte echoed concerns about uneven burden-sharing on Ukraine. Speaking in Helsingborg, Rutte said assistance to Kyiv is not being distributed evenly across the alliance. He praised countries that “punch above their weight,” naming Sweden, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark and Norway among those providing significant help, but warned that many members “are not spending enough” to back Ukraine’s defense.
Ministers are also expected to discuss the situation in the Middle East, including the war in Iran and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was reported to be due in Sweden, and he renewed criticism of NATO for not supporting the US in its actions against Iran, saying allies “refuse to do anything.”
The meeting comes amid wider tensions between Washington and Berlin: following critical comments by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, President Donald Trump announced a planned withdrawal of 5,000 US troops from Germany. There has also been uncertainty over whether a separate planned deployment of thousands of US troops to Poland will go ahead as scheduled.
Edited by: Sean Sinico