US-designated President Donald Trump has demanded a rise in defense spending of NATO member states to five percent of their gross domestic product. “It should be five percent” Trump said at a press conference at his private residence in Mar-a-Lago, Palm Beach, on Tuesday. “You all can afford it.”
Two percent would not be enough. Countries with a regular military need four percent, Trump said.
The other NATO countries are on shaky ground. “Whether you like it or not, Europe is much more affected than the United States” the future US president said. “After all, there is an ocean between us, or is there not? Why do we pay billions and billions of dollars more money than Europe?” European states have a similar large economy to the USA, yet Europe only pays a “fraction” of the sum the United States pays, Trump said.
In 2023, the USA had a share of 67 percent in the sum of NATO countries’ defense spending. In contrast, the USA’s share of the combined GDP of NATO countries is 53 percent.