PARIS — The French government responded curtly to Mark Rutte after the NATO secretary-general said Europe could not defend itself without the U.S.

“No, dear Mark Rutte. Europeans can and must take charge of their own security. Even the United States agrees. This is the European pillar of NATO,” said French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot.

On Monday, answering a question from French far-right MEP Pierre-Romain Thionnet, Rutte told the European Parliament that the continent cannot defend itself without American support. He also pushed back against the idea of a European army — a concept revived recently by EU Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius — and said a “European pillar [of NATO] is a bit of an empty word.”

Since U.S. President Donald Trump returned to power, however, his administration has insisted that Washington will be less involved in Europe’s security. A new U.S. National Defense Strategy published Friday evening said Europeans would have to take the lead against threats, arguing that Europe is economically and militarily capable of defending itself against Russia.

Last year, Trump managed to convince European countries to boost their defense spending to 5 percent of GDP.

Barrot wasn’t alone in France in pushing back against Rutte’s comments.

Muriel Domenach, France’s former ambassador to NATO, posted on X that “with all due respect to the NATO Secretary General, this is not: the right question … the right answer: brandishing European weakness to secure the U.S. guarantee is an outdated approach and sends the wrong message to Russia.”

Without mentioning Rutte specifically, French Armed Forces Minister Catherine Vautrin told French radio that “what we see today is the necessity of NATO’s European pillar.” The idea of making Europeans collectively stronger within the military alliance, first pitched by France a few years ago, is now endorsed by other countries including Germany.

Rutte’s comments also contradicted the assessment of Finnish President Alexander Stubb, who said at Davos last week that Europeans could defend themselves.