NATO weighs US demand to massively hike defence spending as some struggle to meet current goal

NATO foreign ministers on Thursday debated an American demand to massively ramp up defence investment to five per cent of gross domestic product over the next seven years, as the US focuses on security challenges outside of Europe.

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At talks in Antalya, Turkiye, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said that more investment and military equipment are needed to deal with the threat posed by Russia and terrorism, but also by China which has become the focus of US concern.

“When it comes to the core defence spending, we need to do much, much more,” Rutte told reporters.

He underlined that once the war in Ukraine is over, Russia could reconstitute its armed forces within three to five years.