Estonian President Calls for Increasing NATO Defense Spending to 2.5-3% of GDP
Kyiv • UNN
Estonian President Alar Karis believes that NATO allies should consider increasing their defense spending from 2% to 2.5% or 3% of GDP to counter the growing threat from Russia in the next decade.
Estonian President Alar Karis believes that the countries of the North Atlantic Alliance should consider increasing the minimum threshold for member states' defense spending, which is currently 2% of GDP and which not all allies have reached yet. This is reported by ERR, according to UNN.
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President Alar Karis met with his Lithuanian counterpart, Gitanas Nausėda, in Vilnius to discuss cooperation between the two countries, regional security, and preparations for next week's upcoming NATO summit.
NATO should be prepared for Russia to become more dangerous in the next decade than it was in the previous one, so NATO allies should consider increasing their defense spending from 2 to 3 percent of their gross domestic product (GDP), Karis said.
He emphasized that the most important topics for the NATO summit are comprehensive, long-term and effective support for Ukraine both during and after the war, as well as strengthening NATO's defense capabilities and readiness to counter threats from Russia.
"The Alliance must send a strong message that NATO will support Ukraine for as long as it takes. Ukraine's membership in NATO is non-negotiable, and the process of membership is irreversible," the Estonian president said.
He noted that history has taught us that aggressors must be held accountable, not appeased. The imposed peace, he said, is only a temporary solution.
"If Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty are not respected, it will lead to new and larger wars in the future. The Russian Federation and other aggressors will only be encouraged to attack," the Estonian president said.
"Therefore, the only effective strategy now is to support Ukraine as much as possible. NATO has successfully overcome the hesitation to provide military assistance to Ukraine. No restrictions should be placed on further assistance," he said.
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The President added that Estonia has set a goal of allocating at least 0.25 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) to support Ukraine.
Karis also emphasized that it is clear that Russia will remain the most serious military threat to NATO for a very long time.
"In the next decade, Russia will be more hostile than in the previous one. NATO must be prepared for this. NATO has good collective defense plans that must be backed up by the necessary forces and weapons systems," the Estonian president said.
He added that this requires the Alliance to increase defense spending, as it is becoming increasingly clear that 2 percent of each ally's GDP may no longer be enough. "We need to discuss raising the ambitious defense spending to 2.5 or 3 percent," he said.
Karis also emphasized the importance of strengthening air defense by NATO countries.
"Estonia is ready to receive additional allied fighters and air defense systems on a rotational basis, as agreed at last year's NATO summit in Vilnius," the Estonian president said.
As reported, the 75th NATO summit will be held in Washington on July 9-11, with military assistance to Ukraine as one of the main issues.
