THE HAGUE, June 26 – NATO allies agreed Wednesday to more than double their respective defense spending to 5 percent of gross domestic product by 2035, in step with U.S. President Donald Trump’s demand.
The agreement reached in The Hague at a summit of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the world’s largest military alliance, is likely to lead the Trump administration to dial up pressure on Japan and other allies to take similar action.
Under a major overhaul of their defense spending targets that hikes the figure from its current level of 2 percent of GDP, the leaders agreed that their 5 percent commitment comprises two categories of investment.
NATO members pledged to increase spending over the next 10 years to at least 3.5 percent of their respective GDPs on “core defense,” and another 1.5 percent on related critical infrastructure that supports militaries, such as upgrading ports, airfields and bridges.
In a joint declaration, they reaffirmed their “ironclad commitment” to collective defense, such that “an attack on one is an attack on all.” The 32-member transatlantic alliance, which last year marked the 75th anniversary of its foundation, will review “the trajectory and balance” of spending under the new plan in 2029.
Trump has repeatedly complained that the United States has paid more than its fair share defending European countries. He has also raised doubts about whether he would honor a key clause of the alliance’s treaty which requires all NATO members to come to the aid of any member under attack.
On Wednesday, however, Trump eased such concerns, saying he “stands with” NATO’s mutual defense. At a press conference, he called the security alliance’s 5 percent spending deal a “big win.”
