In a significant move ahead of this week's summit in The Hague, NATO's 32 member nations formally agreed on Sunday to escalate defense spending to an ambitious 5% of their gross domestic product by 2035. This consensus was achieved despite last-minute resistance from Spain, marking a notable victory for President Donald Trump, who has consistently pushed for greater contributions from allies.
This new, more than doubling of the current 2% defense spending guideline, represents a watershed moment for the transatlantic alliance. It underscores Europe's commitment to assume a greater share of responsibility for its own security in the face of ongoing threats, particularly from Russia, and persistent calls for burden-sharing from Washington.
Ambassadors from all 32 alliance members formalized the new spending pledge following intensive negotiations spearheaded by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. The agreement stipulates that the 5% target will be divided, with 3.5% allocated to core military expenditures and the remaining 1.5% dedicated to defense-related investments, including crucial infrastructure and cybersecurity enhancements.
Spain, which currently allocates a mere 1.24% of its GDP to defense, initially posed a challenge to the agreement. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez publicly stated that the 5% target was "excessive and unwarranted." However, diplomatic efforts resolved the impasse by subtly adjusting the language in the agreement from "we commit" to "allies commit." This linguistic tweak allowed Spain to differentiate its position while still enabling a unanimous consensus. Sanchez reiterated Spain's stance, declaring, "We fully respect the legitimate desire of other nations to enhance their defense spending, but we will not follow suit." He maintained that Spain could meet all its NATO obligations with a defense expenditure of just 2.1% of GDP.
This historic increase in defense spending is largely attributed to the sustained pressure exerted by Donald Trump, echoing his demands from his first presidency, which in 2018 even included threats of U.S. withdrawal from the alliance. An administration official, describing the pledge as a "major win" for the president, commented, "There is no way they would be going to 5 percent without Trump." President Trump is expected to highlight this achievement in a speech at the summit's conclusion.
The agreed timeline extends Secretary General Rutte's initial proposal of 2032 to 2035, with a progress review slated for 2029. Presently, 23 out of 32 NATO members meet the existing 2% spending goal, with Poland leading the alliance, allocating over 4% of its GDP to defense.
The urgency for unprecedented spending is driven by the fundamentally altered European defense landscape since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Moscow's current military expenditure, estimated at 7% to 8% of its GDP, highlights the escalating threat. NATO estimates indicate that the alliance requires a "400 percent increase in air and missile defense" and "thousands more armored vehicles and tanks" to effectively counter potential Russian aggression.
The formal announcement of this pivotal agreement awaits leader approval at The Hague summit, where President Trump will join other heads of state on Tuesday and Wednesday to solidify this new chapter in NATO's collective defense strategy.
