Defence spending boost to see 18 NATO members hit target in 2024
Al Jazeera
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg says the figure is a ‘sixfold increase’ from 2014 when only three countries met the target.
Eighteen NATO member states plan to meet the alliance’s target of spending the equivalent of 2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) on defence in 2024, Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said.
Speaking in Brussels before a meeting of defence officials from NATO’s 31 members on Wednesday, Stoltenberg noted that the number of states meeting the threshold has risen rapidly amid Russia’s seizure of Ukrainian territory and ultimately its full-scale invasion in 2022.
Concern that the return of former United States President Donald Trump to the White House has also encouraged a rise in spending.
“That is another record number and a sixfold increase from 2014 when only three allies met the target,” Stoltenberg said at a news conference.
