The president of the NATO Military Committee, Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, responded to growing pressure from Washington for allies to increase their defense spending, pointing out that economic resources alone do not guarantee security and that the real challenge is to convert investments into concrete military capabilities.

During his participation in the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, considered the main security forum in Asia, the Italian admiral stated that the Atlantic Alliance is going through a transformation process that seeks to strengthen its response capacity to global challenges.

“We cannot deter anyone just by waving money in the air,” said Cavo Dragone, defending NATO's strategy of translating increased military budgets into forces, equipment and operational infrastructure capable of responding to real threats.

His comments came just one day after the United States Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, once again called on European partners for greater financial and military commitment. During the same forum, the US official maintained that the era in which Washington assumed most of its allies' defense costs has come to an end.

“We need partners, not protectorates,” Hegseth said, addressing both European countries and Asian allies, whom he praised for increasing their military budgets in recent years.

NATO insists on strengthening real capabilities

Cavo Dragone's statements come at a time when NATO is promoting new investment goals for its members. The organization has proposed that countries allocate 3.5% of their Gross Domestic Product to national defense and an additional 1.5% to security-related infrastructure, with the goal of reaching levels close to 5% of GDP by 2035.

The military chief of the Alliance stressed that the current process does not represent a fracture between the United States and Europe, but rather a long-awaited reorganization within the bloc.

“What we are seeing is not a disintegration of NATO, but a necessary and beneficial transformation,” he explained. According to the admiral, European countries are assuming greater defense responsibilities, investing in new capabilities and participating more actively in collective protection.

The discussion takes on special relevance following the recent announcements by President Donald Trump's administration about the redeployment of US military forces in Europe.

Although Washington reiterated that it maintains its commitment to NATO, European allies recognize that they will have to prepare to fill part of the gap that an eventual reduction of US troops and resources in the region may leave.

Global security and new strategic priorities

The Shangri-La Dialogue was also marked by the debate on the strategic balance in the Indo-Pacific. In contrast to previous more confrontational speeches, Hegseth adopted a more moderate tone toward China, while highlighting the role of partners such as Japan, South Korea and the Philippines in regional stability.

For its part, Japan took advantage of the forum to justify strengthening its defense policy and increasing its military capabilities in the face of the growth of Chinese power in Asia. Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said Beijing continues to rapidly expand its military capabilities without sufficient transparency.

Although the situation in the Middle East and the related war with Iran remained in the background of the discussions, much of the debate focused on the redistribution of responsibilities within traditional alliances and the need to strengthen defense capabilities in the face of an increasingly complex international environment.

The positions expressed in Singapore anticipate one of the main issues that will dominate the next NATO summit, scheduled for July in Turkey, where allied leaders will debate how to achieve new spending objectives and how to adapt the organization to a stage marked by greater demands for military autonomy for Europe and a redefinition of the role of the United States within the alliance.