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Spain Rejects NATO’s 5% GDP Defense Target as U.S. Presses Allies

On the eve of the Hague summit, the U.S. demands every European ally alongside Asian partners boost defense budgets to 5 percent of GDP under a burden-sharing plan to counter escalating Chinese influence in Asia.

FILE- President Donald Trump, center, stops to talk with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, left, and Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, as they attend a meeting of the North Atlantic Council during a summit of heads of state and government at NATO headquarters in Brussels on July 11, 2018.
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Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere speaks during a public discussion ahead of the UK-led Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) summit in Tallinn, Estonia December 16, 2024. REUTERS/Ints Kalnins/File Photo
Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics gestures as he speaks during interview in Riga, Latvia June 20, 2025. REUTERS/Ints Kalnins

Overview

  • Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell affirmed that President Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth view 5 percent of GDP on defense as a global standard applying to both NATO members and Asian allies such as South Korea.
  • Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez wrote to NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte that a 5 percent commitment is “unreasonable and counterproductive,” making Spain the first member to publicly reject the proposal.
  • South Korea’s Defense Ministry highlighted its current defense spending of around 2.3 percent of GDP as very high compared with other U.S. allies and pledged ongoing increases given regional security threats.
  • NATO officials outline the 5 percent target as comprising 3.5 percent for direct military expenditures and 1.5 percent for defense-related investments in infrastructure, industry and societal resilience.
  • The June 24–25 summit in The Hague requires unanimous approval of the new spending plan, with growing debate over deadlines, implementation schedules and the scope of eligible investments.