US presses NATO to agree defence spending hike
United States Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has pressed NATO members to agree to Donald Trump's demand for a major increase in defence spending ahead of a summit later this month.
The US president has said NATO allies should boost investment in defence to 5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), up from the current target of 2 percent.
'To be an alliance, you got to be more than flags. You got to be formations. You got to be more than conferences. You need to be, keep combat-ready capabilities,' Hegseth said as he arrived for a meeting of defence ministers in Brussels on Thursday.
'We're here to continue the work that President Trump started, which is a commitment to 5 percent defence spending across this alliance, which we think will happen,' Hegseth said, adding: 'It has to happen by the summit at The Hague later this month.'
In an attempt to compromise with the new target, NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte has proposed that members of the military alliance boost defence spending to 3.5 percent of GDP and commit a further 1.5 percent to broader security-related spending.
'We have to go further and we have to go faster,' Rutte told reporters on Wednesday.
'A new defence investment plan will be at the heart of the NATO summit in The Hague,' he added.
Reporting from Brussels, Al Jazeera's Hashem Ahelbarra said for some European countries, including Spain, Germany and Belgium, meeting a 5 percent target will be 'extremely difficult'.
'But they have decided they are going to further coordinate their military strategy particularly when it comes to acquiring air defence systems, long-range missiles and also train their troops to be ready for the potential of any geopolitical change,' Ahelbarra said.
Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, European NATO members have been steadily increasing their defence spending.
Ahelbarra said European members are 'concerned' that Russia remains the 'biggest threat to stability in the region'.
Diplomats have said that countries are attempting to negotiate the timeline to achieve the 5 percent target.
Rutte has proposed reaching the target by 2032, which some countries consider too late, while others think it's unrealistic, considering current spending and industrial production levels.
Lithuanian Defence Minister Dovile Sakaliene said on Wednesday that the 2032 target was 'definitely too late, and pushed for a target of 2030 at the latest.
Swedish Defence Minister Pal Jonson told reporters on Thursday that Stockholm also wants to see the bloc reach the 5 percent target by 2030.
Meanwhile, NATO officials have estimated that, on average, meeting the new targets would cost countries between 3.5 and 3.7 percent of GDP.
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