Dutch defense spending surges past NATO targets as alliance sets sights higher

The Netherlands comfortably met NATO’s previous defense spending target last year, while only a few other member states barely reached it. Following the summit in The Hague, NATO countries are now expected to aim for a significantly higher minimum. However, not all nations have met the agreed threshold for the portion of their budget devoted to weapons.

In 2025, the Netherlands spent 2.59 percent of its GDP on defense, surpassing the agreed minimum of 2 percent, according to NATO. Since President Donald Trump took office, the United States has intensified pressure on European allies and Canada to raise their defense budgets, even threatening to withhold protection from allies who fail to contribute sufficiently, challenging the core principles of NATO.

Southern European nations have been especially reluctant to increase their defense spending, though they made small last-minute contributions to ensure that Trump would attend the summit in The Hague. In the past year, Spain, Portugal, Canada, Belgium, and Albania each hit the 2 percent target, while Italy and the Czech Republic only slightly exceeded it with 2.1 percent.

Despite earlier reluctance, European countries and Canada increased their defense spending by 20 percent compared to the previous year, NATO reports in its annual briefing by Secretary General Mark Rutte.

At the next summit in Ankara, they will need to demonstrate credible progress toward the goal of spending 5 percent of GDP by 2035, with 3.5 points allocated to defense and 1.5 points to support areas like cyber defense and promoting the arms industry.

Last year, Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia surpassed the 3.5 percent threshold, driven by their proximity to Russia and security concerns. Meanwhile, the United States has yet to reach the new target, with its defense spending in 2025 actually falling compared to the year before.

The agreement reached in The Hague allows for certain exceptions, enabling Spain to sign despite its reluctance. So far, the other countries report that they are adhering to it, and Spain says it would do the same if the funds prove necessary.

Not all 32 NATO members met a second 2014 agreement to spend at least 20 percent of their budgets on weapons and other equipment, according to Rutte’s annual report. Belgium, Albania, and Estonia fell below this threshold, though Estonia still maintains one of the alliance’s largest defense budgets.