Only I can fix it · Second term · № 57
NATO's 5% pledge: 'nobody else could have done that but me'
“David, you were shocked when I got 5 percent instead of 2 percent because nobody else could have done that but me.”
- Said
- , Interview with The New York Times, Oval Office
- Subject
- NATO defense spending
- Topic
- Foreign policy
- Era
- Second term
What happened
At the June 24-25, 2025 Hague summit, NATO members committed to 5% of GDP on defense by 2035, split into 3.5% for core military spending and 1.5% for related areas such as infrastructure and cyber, with a review scheduled for 2029. Spain opposed the target and received an exemption, committing only to raise its spending gradually to about 2.1%. Contributions to Ukraine's defense count toward the total. The 2035 deadline means no member's compliance can yet be assessed.