The volatile US leader has demanded that alliance members boost defence budgets to five percent of their GDP at the June 24-25 meeting in the Netherlands.

Axar.az reports, citing AFP, NATO chief Mark Rutte has put forward a compromise agreement for 3.5 percent of GDP on core military spending by 2032, and 1.5 percent on broader security-related areas such as infrastructure.

Several diplomats say Rutte looks on track to secure the deal for the summit in The Hague as NATO grapples with the threat from Russia after more than three years of war in Ukraine.

But a few allies are still hesitant about committing to such levels of spending.

"The reason I'm here is to make sure every country in NATO understands every shoulder has to be to the plough, every country has to contribute at that level of 5 percent," Hegseth said at a meeting with his NATO counterparts in Brussels.

"Our message is going to continue to be clear. It's deterrence and peace through strength, but it can't be reliance. It cannot and will not be reliance on America in a world of a lot of threats," he said.