Over 20 NATO allies to spend at least 2% of GDP on defense in 2024

18/6/2024 6:32

        More than 20 NATO members will meet the alliance's target of allocating at least 2% of GDP to defense this year, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Monday, highlighting how allies have raised military spending since Russia seized Crimea from Ukraine in 2014.
        
        Stoltenberg told U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House that the number of NATO allies now meeting that spending target compares to less than 10 members five years ago.
        
        "Across Europe and Canada, NATO allies are this year increasing defense spending by 18%, that's the biggest increase in decades, and 23 allies are going to spend 2% of GDP or more on defense this year," he said.
        
        Speaking earlier at the Wilson Center think tank, Stoltenberg said the increase in defense spending by the allies "is good for Europe and good for America, especially since much of this extra money is spent here in the United States."
        
        Stoltenberg was in Washington for preparations for next month's NATO summit in the U.S. capital, a topic that he and Biden discussed as well.