NATO leaders have promised this Tuesday to invest at least 2 % of their GDP in military spending, while recognizing that it will be necessary to go beyond this bar in view of the needs generated by the new security environment in relation to with the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
This is reflected in the declaration of the Vilnius summit, in Lithuania, in which the 31 NATO allies promise to invest “at least” 2 % and recognize the need to “urgently” reach this threshold to “comply sustainably with commitments as NATO allies”.
This commitment renews the one reached at the summit in Wales in 2014, when NATO set itself the goal of reaching 2 % within a decade. Almost over that term, only 11 of the 31 allies reach the scale, although in NATO they value that spending has grown uninterruptedly for a decade, when only three allies reached the goal.
Now the logic is that this figure is the minimum requirement and not a future perspective, but a pressing reality. So much so that the text agreed upon by the allied leaders recognizes that “in many cases” it will be necessary to spend more than this threshold, since the NATO countries have to “remedy the existing deficiencies and satisfy the needs in all areas derived from a more contested security order.”
Along with the commitment of 2 % in Defense, the leaders reiterate the objective of spending at least 20 % of the budget on equipment and military research. “We recognize that this should be met along with a minimum of 2 % of GDP in annual defense spending,” he stressed.
The NATO Heads of State and Government reiterate their commitment to provide the necessary forces, capabilities and resources for NATO operations, missions and activities. To do this, they will take into account the deterrence and defense requirements established by the NATO Defense Plans, which have received the approval of the leaders after months of being drawn up by the alliance’s military commanders. All this is accompanied by the objective of having a “strong and capable” industrial base that supplies NATO members with the necessary capabilities.
Source: dpa
(Reference image source: Paul Ellis/PA Wire/dpa)
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