Germany on Thursday dismissed efforts by US President-elect Donald Trump to press NATO members to spend a staggering 5% of the gross domestic product on defense – more than double the military pact’s current spending target.
“What Donald Trump is proposing is unrealistic. We won’t end up with 5%,” Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck told newspapers of the Funke media group. The common NATO target is currently 2%.
Habeck reiterated his push for an increase in defense spending to 3.5% of gross domestic product, saying: “3.5% is roughly what is currently being discussed in NATO as a medium-term goal.”
The changed security situation requires that Europe must do more for its own security, Habeck reiterated.
The current NATO goal stipulates that the alliance states invest at least 2% of their GDP on defense. According to the latest NATO figures, the German government has reported defense spending of around €90.6 billion ($93.3 billion) to the alliance this year. According to estimates, this could correspond to a GDP share of around 2.1%. In addition to the US, only four of the 32 NATO states are likely to have reached a mark of 3% in 2023.
Germany is currently meeting the NATO target with the €100 billion (nearly $103 billion) special fund for the country’s military, which is financed through debt. The money from this special fund is expected to be spent by the end of 2027.
Germany rejects Trump’s 5% GDP defense spending proposal, supports 3.5% as a more realistic NATO target.https://t.co/w3b82L0QSH
— Defensehere (@defensehere_en) January 9, 2025
