US Slams NATO States Unable to Produce Future Ammunition

NATO member states are currently not ready to produce ammunition at the speed that will be needed in the future, said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

"It's clear to the world, to all of us in the alliance and outside the alliance, that right now we are not able to produce munitions at the level that is needed for future needs. This is something that must be overcome, something we can work on together. This is something we want to work on together," Rubio said at a NATO Foreign Ministers meeting in Sweden.

Rubio said the ministers met to prepare the ground for what he called what could be "one of the most important summit meetings in NATO history," scheduled for July in Ankara.

He also said US President Donald Trump was disappointed with the response of a number of NATO allies to US military operations in the Middle East.

"All of that is well documented. It has to be discussed. It will not be solved immediately. It will be discussed today, and it is something that needs to be discussed at the level of leaders," Rubio said.

On April 1, Trump said he was seriously considering withdrawing the United States from NATO after allies refused to join the US-Israeli war against Iran.

He said he no longer viewed Europe as a reliable defense partner after European countries rejected his call to send warships to the strategic waterway.

On April 9, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said some members of the alliance were "somewhat slow" in supporting the US military campaign against Iran because they had not received prior notification from Trump.

However, Rutte said almost all allies have now provided the support Washington has asked for.