NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte has warned that if NATO members don’t commit to spending 5% of GDP on defence it will soon be time to “get your Russian language course out”. The former Dutch PM has called on NATO capitals to ramp up defence spending as Russia continues to wage war on Ukraine.
NATO defence ministers agreed that 3.5% of GDP would be used for “core defence spending” on heavy weapons, tanks, air defence. Meanwhile 1.5% of annual GDP will be spent on defence and security-related areas like infrastructure, surveillance, and cyber defence.
“These targets describe exactly what capabilities Allies need to invest in over the coming years,” Mr Rutte told reporters. Anticipating a future Russian attack on NATO, Mr Rutte continued: “If we don’t act now, the next three years, we are fine, but we have to start now, because otherwise, from three, four or five years from now, we are really under threat.”
“I really mean this. Then you have to get your Russian language course out, or go to New Zealand,” he added.
Donald Trump’s ambassador to NATO, Mathew Whitaker, has called for immediate “credible progress” on defence investment from European members.
“The threats facing NATO are growing and our adversaries are certainly not waiting for us to re-arm or be ready for them to make the first move,” he said.
“We would prefer our allies move out urgently on reaching the 5%,” he told journalists in a briefing on the margins of the meetings”, he added.
Since the start of the Trump administration, the White House has consistently called out European states for failing to adequately invest in its own defence, allowing the US to underwrite it. Since then, capitals across the continent, including the UK, have vowed to “step up” and take control of Europe’s defence posture.