Germany has pledged to spend more than 2% of its GDP on defence this year, with NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg hailing the “unprecedented” increase in defence spending across the US-led alliance.
Earlier this week, Chancellor Olaf Scholz told the defense industry that Germany would meet the NATO defense spending target of 2%. Photo: AP
Accordingly, the German government will spend 73.41 billion USD (68.58 billion euros) on defense in the current year, equivalent to 2.01% of Germany's GDP.
Germany will spend 1.57% of its GDP on defense in 2023, falling short of its 2% target. However, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz pledged to meet the 2% spending commitment on Monday during a visit to Rheinmetall's futuristic weapons factory site.
News of Germany hitting its 2% spending target came as NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg hailed an "unprecedented" 11% increase in defence spending across the 31-nation alliance.
“This year, I expect 18 allies to spend 2% of their GDP on defence. That is another record,” Mr Stoltenberg said at a ministerial press conference in Brussels.
The figure represents a six-fold increase from 2014 when only three allies met the target, he said.
Mr Stoltenberg added that European NATO countries will invest a total of $380 billion in defense this year.
By 2023, 11 allies are expected to reach the 2% target under NATO's previous estimates, including Poland, the US, Greece, Estonia, Lithuania, Finland, Romania, Hungary, Latvia, the UK and Slovakia.
The surge in defense spending in Europe comes as Russia's war in Ukraine approaches the two-year mark.
The conflict has seen Western allies ramp up spending on military aid, although some are concerned about continuing to fund Ukraine's defence effort against Russia.
Mai Van (according to DPA, Reuters)
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