“Despite the economic consequences of Covid-19, 2020 was the sixth consecutive year that defense spending among European allies and Canada increased by 3.9% in real terms,” the alliance leader told a news conference. “We expect this trend to continue this year, but it is absolutely vital that we maintain this movement, as security challenges have not disappeared.”
NATO’s defense spending last year reached 860 billion euros, according to NATO’s annual report.
US defense spending accounts for 71% of total NATO spending.
In 11 of the Alliance’s 30 member states, defense spending meets NATO’s target of 2% of GDP.
However, this proportion has to some extent been ensured in the context of the dramatic economic downturn caused by the pandemic.
“In 2020, some Allies, where spending was already quite high, are now above 2%, given the projected decline in GDP,” Stoltenberg said. “But what is stable and what we see every year is the steady increase in defense spending across the Alliance.”
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