Danish ex-PM attacks Trump for comments on defence spending
Posted August 22, 2019 4:14 am.
COPENHAGEN — A former Danish prime minister has lashed out at U.S. President Donald Trump for his tweet about military spending, saying defence willingness is not just about the amount of money spent.
Lars Loekke Rasmussen, who led the country until June, tweeted Thursday to Trump: “We have had (proportionally) exactly the same numbers of casualties in Afghanistan as US. We always stands firm and ready.”
Trump, who has urged NATO members to do more to meet the alliance’s goal of committing 2 per cent of gross domestic product to defence, earlier tweeted that “Denmark is only at 1.35%.”
Loekke Rasmussen’s comment is the latest in an escalating spat between the U.S. and Denmark after Trump scrapped a visit saying current Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen made a “nasty” statement when she rejected his idea of buying Greenland as an absurdity.
The Associated Press