By 2024, NATO allies are expected to reach 18 that respect their commitments on defense spending, at least 2% of GDP, with Greece at the top, but Germany also joining the non-aligned alliance. Valid till now.
“Since the investment pledge was made in 2014, European allies and Canada have added more than US$600 billion to defence. Last year saw an unprecedented 11% increase in European allies and Canada. This year, I expect the 18 allies to spend 2% of their GDP on defence. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said.
According to the information, Germany managed more than 2% while it was below the threshold with 1.66. France is very close but off target, while Turkey is also expected to show an increase compared to 2023.
Luxembourg with 1.13% and Belgium with 1.25% are last on the list of 31 NATO allies. However, Luxembourg has concluded a special agreement, due to the number of nationals working in the country who are not permanent residents, whereby the target is national income and not GDP. It was calculated that the other Allies would have to spend 1 million euros per soldier per year.
As NATO points out, in 2014, three allies devoted 2% or more of their GDP to defense. Collectively, in 2014, NATO allies in Europe invested 1.47% of their GDP in defence. This rate has been steadily increasing for a decade and will reach 2% in 2024 for the first time. Since 2014, European allies and Canada have added more than $600 billion to defense by the end of 2024.
“Dangerous” And “irresponsible” Trump's statements according to Julian Smith
The new figures come after former US President Donald Trump sparked a backlash by saying that if a NATO member was attacked, he would effectively reject Article 5 and encourage Moscow to attack countries outside the top 2% of their defense spending. , every other member of the alliance will treat this act of violence as an armed attack against all members and take such measures as they deem necessary to assist the alliance.
to “dangerous” And “irresponsible” NATO Ambassador Julian Smith made the statements at a press conference in Brussels ahead of the Defense Ministers' Summit tomorrow, February 15.
“Encouraging the Kremlin to attack any NATO ally or allied territory really puts our soldiers, American soldiers and our allies' soldiers at greater risk.” Julian Smith pointed out.
“We need to realize that a strong NATO is important for Europe” but it is “also important for the US”. Jens Stoltenberg explained, stressing that “the criticism we hear is not fundamentally about NATO, it's about NATO not spending enough on NATO and that's a valid point.” The alliance secretary-general specifically avoided mentioning Trump's “emboldening of Moscow,” focusing on “the whole idea of NATO that an attack on one ally would trigger a response from the entire alliance.”
“NATO is not an a la carte alliance”
At the same time, Nabila Masrali, representative of the commission, reiterated “NATO is not an a la carte alliance” Responding again to Trump's comment.
Ian Lesser, vice president of the German Marshall Fund, spoke to VIMA about the disruption to NATO and the EU if Donald Trump is re-elected. Ian Lesser agrees on a statement by former Trump national security adviser John Bolton, who sounded the alarm that “NATO is in real danger” (cnn 12/02). “In the sense that it's not necessarily because the US is leaving NATO. I think it's very difficult to do that. There's going to be a lot of opposition in the Senate or elsewhere. But because the US can behave in a way that makes NATO less functional and less valuable. There are a number of ways this could happen. Certainly, John Bolton , having served in the Trump administration, can understand the president's sentiments. So, yes, I share that concern.”
However, Trump's return to power will create problems for Washington-Brussels relations. “He has by no means had the same passion and appreciation for the European Union. Another Trump administration will have serious implications for the relationship between Washington and Brussels. Not only in the relationship, but across the Atlantic in general, and in the EU's role as an intermediary in transatlantic relations in particular.”.
However, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization has shown no intention of slowing aid to Ukraine, an issue the alliance's defense ministers will focus on.
The draft NATO-Ukraine statement is expected to emphasize that a strong and independent Ukraine is essential to stability in the Euro-Atlantic region, while avoiding clear references to the country's future in NATO. For timetables.
