The United States voiced optimism on Wednesday that next week's NATO summit in Ankara will be a success.
"We're prepared to have a very successful summit for this year, because last year was unprecedented and really consequential," US NATO Ambassador Matthew Whitaker said during a virtual briefing with journalists.
Whitaker said the meeting in Ankara would focus on assessing the implementation of the defence commitments agreed at last year's summit in The Hague.
Defence capabilities in particular should be closely examined, he said, stressing that the issue goes beyond simply increasing spending.
"Ultimately, it's about the capabilities that are bought with that spending, and and that has to support the current burden shift that is happening here in Europe."
The US government has been pressing for some time for Europeans to take more responsibility for their own defence capability.
In response to Russia's war against Ukraine and at the urging of President Donald Trump, NATO then committed at its summit last year to increase defence spending in an unprecedented way. The allies agreed on the goal of investing 5% of gross domestic product annually in defence and security by 2035 at the latest - more than at any time since the Cold War. In addition to military spending, investments in infrastructure are also being approved.
Whitaker stressed that some allies were contributing more than others. Countries such as Poland, the Nordic nations, the Baltic states and Germany were taking a leading role, he said. Some had already reached the 5% target, while others were on track to do so in the near future.
Trump expected those allies still falling short to intensify their efforts "immediately," Whitaker said.
Relations between the US and some European allies have been strained. Trump and other members of his administration have repeatedly criticized what they see as inadequate support from allies for the US war against Iran - the US president accused them, among other things, of a lack of loyalty.
