Nato remains ambiguous on goals in the new world

At the close of the Nato (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) Summit 2025 in The Hague, alliance members made a landmark decision: All 32 nations agreed to raise defence spending to 5% of their gross domestic product (GDP) by 2035.

- Gurjit Singh

At the close of the Nato (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) Summit 2025 in The Hague, alliance members made a landmark decision: All 32 nations agreed to raise defence spending to 5% of their gross domestic product (GDP) by 2035. The new pledge, up from the long-standing 2% benchmark, marks the most ambitious military investment target in the alliance's history and reflects mounting security concerns across the Euro-Atlantic space. US President Donald Trump hailed the agreement as a "monumental win" for Washington, claiming that it corrected longstanding imbalances in Nato's burden-sharing.

The summit declaration outlined that the 5% commitment will be split into two distinct categories. Around 3.5% of GDP will go toward traditional defence spending aligned with Nato capability targets, covering military hardware, force readiness, and interoperability. The remaining 1.5% will be directed toward emerging non-military threats—securing critical infrastructure, cyber defence, civil preparedness, innovation, and the defence industrial base.