European NATO foreign ministers have started discussing a proposal to gradually raise the alliance’s defense spending target from the current 2% of GDP to 3% by 2030, the Financial Times reported, citing unnamed sources on December 12.
Under the proposed plan, NATO members would first increase their spending to 2.5% of GDP before reaching 3%.
Currently, 23 NATO member states meet the existing 2% spending target, a significant increase from previous years. However, several countries, including Spain and Italy, have yet to meet this goal.
Officials aim to finalize the new target at NATO’s next summit in The Hague this summer. However, concerns remain that fiscal constraints in some of Europe’s largest economies could derail the plan.
Italy, already under the European Union’s Excessive Deficit Procedure due to its persistently high budget deficit, faces significant challenges in balancing increased military spending with the need to reduce its deficit.
“Politics is making choices in scarcity, and there’s always a lack of money and always too many priorities,” NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said the FT.
Previously, Rutte stated that alliance members will soon discuss increasing defense spending targets beyond the current 2% of GDP, as this level is insufficient to ensure long-term security.
