NATO summit: The countries which denied to meet 5% defence spending

Spain has reportedly hinted that it will not be matching the new defence spending target of 5 per cent of the GDP proposed by the alliance. Spain argued that it is unreasonable and counterproductive to increase the defence spending. It said that, being a sovereign ally, it reserves the right to decide its own defence budget.

In a letter to the NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez asked to adopt a more comprehensive framework, on June 19, 2025.

Spain currently spends 1.27 per cent of its GDP lowest among the NATO countries. US President Donald Trump called Spain ‘notorious’ for its low defence spending.

As the US President Trump is pushing for the new cap of 5 per cent, currently, in 2024, nine nations missed the 2 per cent spending mark; these are Spain, Belgium, Luxembourg, Slovenia, Canada, Portugal, Italy, Montenegro and Croatia. It has to be noted that these agreements are not legally binding, and there is no international court where the defaulters have to be answerable. Trump has reportedly claimed that his NATO allies are not spending enough, holding back their weight and have threatened to pull back support for those who fall short.

Belgium and Slovakia have also hinted that they are unlikely to meet the spending cap by the deadline of 2035. Belgium's defence spending in 2024 was 1.3% of GDP, significantly below the 2% target.While Belgium supports the new target, it's pushing for flexibility in how the spending is applied.Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever stated that increasing spending to 3.5% in 10 years is a more realistic objective.

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said it has other priorities like “recovering public finances and catching up with the average standard of living in the European Union.” He said that the state must reserve its sovereign right how much budget it wants to allocate to its defence.