“Unattainable” expenses today “. While the military spending of Europeans increased in 2024, the will of the American president Donald Trump to see them be brought to 5 % of the GDP would be unrealistic, estimated this Wednesday, February 12, a specialized British institute.
According to the annual report of the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), military spending in Europe thus increased by 11.4 % in 2024, powered by the support provided to kyiv. They are “50 % higher than ten years ago”, without considering inflation. But “with the persistence of budgetary pressures in most European countries, it will probably be difficult to maintain such an increase”, estimates the institute based in London in this report on “military balance” which relates to more than 170 countries .
Do “much more”
The NATO budget would increase by $ 250 billion (241 billion euros) if the contribution of European allies was increased to 3 % of GDP, and $ 750 billion (723 billion euros) if it climbed to 5 %. This increase corresponds to that claimed by US President Donald Trump from NATO members, more than double the annual objective of the Alliance. “But such figures are unattainable at present, certain countries already using out -of -budget instruments” to invest in the defense, says the Iiss.
NATO European countries must spend “much more” for their defense, repeated this Wednesday the secretary general of the Alliance Mark Rutte. “We have to do much more to have what we need for deterrence and defense […] In order for the burden to be shared more equitably, “he said before a meeting at NATO in the presence of the new US Secretary for Defense Pete Hegseth. For his first trip to the headquarters of the Alliance, the latter had hammered again on Tuesday that “the urgency of the moment requires that friends talk to each other about their capacities, their leadership, the intensification of their efforts, the sharing of charges”, and that it was to Europe “To invest the most” in his own defense.
Germany’s military spending jumped 23 % to $ 86 billion in 2024 (83 billion euros). Its budget is now the most important on the continent, “exceeding that of the United Kingdom, which was most substantial in Europe and the second of NATO” for thirty years. France, on the other hand, spent 47.2 billion euros for its defense in 2024, a level having to climb to 50.5 billion in 2025 according to the increase provided for by the military programming law 2024-2030 voted past year.
For its part, the United States spends almost 3 % of its GDP each year in defense, which represented nearly $ 842 billion in 2024.
Expenses increasing in the world
Worldwide, defense expenses increased in 2024 by 7.4 %, reaching $ 2,400 billion (2,320 billion euros). The war in Ukraine, which started three years ago with the Russian invasion, the conflict between Israel and Hamas and tensions in the Indo-Pacific region have been increasing this increase.
According to the IISS, Moscow has “managed to increase its forces (in Ukraine) thanks to the help of North Korea and Iran”, Pyongyang having sent 10,000 soldiers and teheran of ballistic drones and missiles. However, Russia lost 1,400 fighting tanks last year, according to the report. Ukraine, “underwent a decrease in its (military) staff (military) greater than Russia”, and even if kyiv has received more advanced equipment, “Western military aid seems insufficient to support a sustained sustained counter-offensive “. China increased its defense budget by 7 % in 2024, to 235 billion dollars (226 billion euros).