All NATO members are expected to meet the longstanding target of spending 2% of GDP on defence this year, but only three currently reach a new, higher target set by alliance leaders in June, according to NATO data released Thursday.
Military spending across NATO has risen sharply in recent years, spurred by Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine and calls from U.S. leaders for European allies to invest more in their own defence. Last year, more than 10 of NATO’s 32 members fell short of the 2% goal agreed in 2014.
Figures for 2025 show all allies meeting the target, with seven just at the 2% minimum and several slightly above. Poland leads in defence spending as a share of GDP at 4.48%, followed by Lithuania at 4% and Latvia at 3.73%. These three countries are currently the only NATO members exceeding the new 3.5% target agreed at the June summit in The Hague.
The new goal is part of a broader plan to reach 5% of GDP on defence and security-related investments by 2035, covering areas such as cybersecurity and infrastructure upgrades for military logistics.
Speaking at the opening of a Rheinmetall ammunition factory in Unterluess, Germany, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte welcomed the increased spending but stressed that funding alone does not guarantee security.
“Cash alone doesn’t provide security,” he said. “Deterrence doesn’t come from 5%. Deterrence comes from the capability to fight potential enemies.”
The ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon will be lengthened by three weeks, U.S. President Donald Trump said in a post on social media website...
Lebanon and Israel have agreed to extend their ceasefire by three weeks following talks at the White House, U.S. President Donald Trump...
The U.S. military is redirecting at least three Iranian-flagged tankers after intercepting them in Asian w...
The European Union adopted its 20th package of sanctions against Russia on Thursday (23 April), introducing sweeping new restrictions aimed at weak...
European Union leaders were set to discuss the bloc’s mutual assistance clause at a summit in southern Cyprus on Thursday, as U.S. President ...
The ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon will be lengthened by three weeks, U.S. President Donald Trump said in a post on social media website Truth Social early on Friday (24 April), while stating in a separate earlier post that he was in no rush to make a deal with Iran.
Lebanon and Israel have agreed to extend their ceasefire by three weeks following talks at the White House, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday (23 April).
The U.S. military is redirecting at least three Iranian-flagged tankers after intercepting them in Asian waters near India, Malaysia and Sri Lanka, shipping and security sources said on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Tehran said U.S. breaches, blockades and threats are undermining “genuine negotiations.”
We are not witnessing another cyclical downturn or a temporary geopolitical disturbance. What we are living through is far more profound: a systemic recalibration of the global order. Three long-standing assumptions have quietly collapsed.
The U.S. military has intercepted at least three Iranian-flagged tankers in Asian waters and is redirecting them away from their positions near India, Malaysia and Sri Lanka, shipping and security sources said on Wednesday, exclusively to Reuters.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards targeted three vessels, seizing two of them for alleged maritime violations and transferring them to Iranian shores, as U.S. President Donald Trump said Washington is extending its ceasefire with Iran until Tehran submits a proposal.
Two local trains collided head-on north of Copenhagen on Thursday (23 April), injuring 17 people, five of them critically, according to emergency services.
The U.S. military is redirecting at least three Iranian-flagged tankers after intercepting them in Asian waters near India, Malaysia and Sri Lanka, shipping and security sources said on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Tehran said U.S. breaches, blockades and threats are undermining “genuine negotiations.”
The European Union is preparing its 20th round of sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine. The measures are close to being approved, after earlier delays linked to energy concerns in Slovakia and Hungary eased following repairs to the Druzhba oil pipeline.
The European Union adopted its 20th package of sanctions against Russia on Thursday (23 April), introducing sweeping new restrictions aimed at weakening Moscow’s war economy and limiting its capacity to sustain the war in Ukraine.
European Union leaders were set to discuss the bloc’s mutual assistance clause at a summit in southern Cyprus on Thursday, as U.S. President Donald Trump’s criticism of traditional allies raises concerns over his commitment to NATO.
International cyber agencies on Thursday (23 April) urged organisations to strengthen defences against covert networks used by China-linked hackers to conceal malicious activity, Britain’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) said.
SoutSouth Korea’s national data protection agency said on Thursday it had imposed a significant fine on matchmaking service Duo following a cybersecurity failure that led to the leak of highly sensitive personal information.
China has released a military propaganda video hinting at a possible fourth aircraft carrier - its first to be nuclear-powered.
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