Trump criticizes NATO: Washington can not be the fool who is exploited by others

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - US President Donald Trump has said he stands firmly with NATO, but has insisted that his country "bear more burdens."

"We will be with NATO 100 percent, but as I said to the (NATO) countries, you have to change equipment, and you have to pay," he told the Pentagon during a speech on the new US missile defense strategy on Thursday.

Trump repeatedly criticized NATO members for not raising their defense budgets, and today reiterated his view that allies close to his country have been exploiting the US security umbrella for decades and intends to stop it.

"We can not be the fool who is being exploited by others. We do not want to be described as such," he said.

Trump focused on the planned expansion of US missile defense capabilities, which he said would block any new threats, including the supersonic rockets developed by Moscow that no interceptor could intercept.

"The rich countries that we protect are willing to bear more burdens and are cooperating," he said.

"There is no alternative to American military power, and our army is now stronger than ever," he said, stressing that he would not allow the Iranian regime to seek intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Trump's visit to Pentagon headquarters was to unveil the new US defense strategy on anti-missile systems aimed at countering threats posed by new weapons to Russia and China as well as Iran and North Korea. He ordered 2017 to analyze US missile defense techniques and adapt them to changing threats .

Advanced weapons
The US Department of Defense speaks in a more than 80-page document, including paragraphs on the media, detailing new projects it plans to develop to protect the United States, especially from new, supersonic rockets developed by Russia and China.

These missiles, which can fly at a speed of more than 5,000 km / h (four times the speed of the sound) and can be easily controlled while flying, can not be intercepted after launch.

To defend itself, the United States wants to be able to track its movements with special equipment, by upgrading equipment already deployed in space, according to the same document.

On the other hand, the Department of Defense launched a study on the design of a new interception system in space, a new type of aircraft will be equipped with missiles and remain in orbit permanently to destroy a missile supersonic at a peak in space.

The new defense strategy also targets ballistic missiles developed by US adversaries, where the Department of Defense is working on another method of research that destroys these missiles as soon as they are launched.

Current missile defense systems focus on destroying missiles while flying. According to the document, by targeting them when they are at an accelerated stage, the United States can strengthen the defenses of its allies and deter the States concerned.

One of the hypotheses is to provide the new F-35 with a new type of missile to destroy any North Korean missile as soon as it is launched in the event of an open conflict with the North Korean regime.

The Pentagon also wants to develop laser devices that can be equipped with aircraft and allow the destruction of ballistic missiles at an accelerated stage.