As U.S. President Donald Trump repeatedly raises Europe's security free-riding issue and questions the usefulness of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Italy has floated a plan to expand NATO's scope to non-European countries, including Korea.
On the 5th (local time), Italy's defense Minister Guido Crosetto said in an interview with the New York Times (NYT) that "in a changed world, NATO should look beyond Europe and North America to seek new members such as Australia, Brazil, India, Japan, and Korea." He said, "In the past, NATO was formed to provide safety and stability to certain regions, but now we need an organization that can provide them to the entire world," adding, "It should no longer remain a club of Northern Hemisphere elites."
Founded in 1949, NATO has been on edge amid debates over defense cost-sharing and the role of the alliance, as President Donald Trump criticizes the bloc and mentions a possible withdrawal. Trump has continuously taken issue with European allies' defense burdens.
In this situation, with even the possibility being raised of the United States adjusting the military capabilities it provides to NATO, discussions continue on the potential for structural changes to the alliance. The United States is NATO's largest military power, and assessments note that any change in its role could affect the balance of the entire alliance.
Minister Crosetto also proposed building a European continent with defensive capabilities and a new European defense cooperation body encompassing the 27 European Union (EU) member states, the United Kingdom, Norway, Türkiye, and Ukraine. He explained that the plan would not replace NATO but would strengthen Europe's role to complement NATO's European pillar.
He said that on Apr. he delivered a Seohan Engineering & Construction containing this plan to defense Ministers of each country and to EU and NATO leadership. He was said to have particularly emphasized that Ukraine should be included as a core member.
Italy's latest proposal comes amid a push to emphasize strategic autonomy within Europe. Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni once drew attention for a politically skeptical stance on European integration, but more recently has been seen as taking a more pragmatic approach between strengthening European security cooperation and maintaining a NATO-centered order. Minister Crosetto co-founded the right-wing party "Brothers of Italy (FdI)" in 2012, led by Meloni.