U.S. army vehicles including tanks are brought ashore in the Netherlands as a military unit is transported to Poland and Lithuania as part of a NATO mission to reinforce the alliance's eastern flank after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, in Vlissingen, Netherlands January 11, 2023. REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
(Reuters) - NATO-member defense spending may come back into focus as former U.S. President Donald Trump returns to office.
Republican Trump, 78, was elected president on Wednesday, defeating Democratic candidate Kamala Harris. He previously served as U.S. president from 2017 to 2021. In congratulating Trump on his election, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said that "two-thirds of Allies now spend at least 2% of their GDP on defense, and defense spending and production are on an onward trajectory across the Alliance."
In the past, Trump has been critical of NATO, accusing European members of spending too little on defense.
NATO members are committed to spending at least 2% of gross domestic product (GDP) on defense.
NATO estimated that in 2024 Poland leads the alliance by spending 4.12% of GDP on defense followed by Estonia at 3.43% and the U.S. at 3.38%.
NATO defense expenditure estimates as a share of GDP in 2024:
Poland 4.12
Estonia 3.43
United States 3.38
Latvia 3.15
Greece 3.08
Lithuania 2.85
Finland 2.41
Denmark 2.37
United Kingdom 2.33
Romania 2.25
North Macedonia 2.22
Norway 2.20
Bulgaria 2.18
Sweden 2.14
Germany 2.12
Hungary 2.11
Czechia 2.10
Türkiye 2.09
France 2.06
Netherlands 2.05
Albania 2.03
Montenegro 2.02
Slovak Republic 2.00
Croatia 1.81
Portugal 1.55
Italy 1.49
Canada 1.37
Belgium 1.30
Luxembourg 1.29
Slovenia 1.29
Spain 1.28
Source: NATO estimates
(Reporting by Mike Stone in Washington; Editing by Matthew Lewis)
