European governments are concerned by President Donald Trump’s current foreign policy. Trump is attempting to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine without Europe’s direct involvement. And while the absolute critical ingredient of any successful peace depends on post-war peacekeepers, Trump’s deluded history of the war is a problem deserving of concern.

Still, Americans also have a right to be irritated with Europe. Alongside the U.S., only Poland, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Greece, and Lithuania spent more than 2.5% of GDP on defense in 2024 (Poland and Estonia actually spent more as a percentage of GDP than the U.S.). It is outrageous that so many of NATO’s 32 member states still spend less than the 2% NATO minimum target or barely meet it. Spain spent just 1.28% of GDP on defense in 2024, and Belgium, which somehow still has the honor of hosting NATO headquarters, spent just 1.3% of GDP on defense. Italy, Europe’s fourth largest economy, spent 1.47% of GDP on defense.