NATO to put pressure on allies not stepping up, warns Dutch minister

Allies not on their way to spending 5 percent of GDP on defence will come under pressure from fellow NATO allies, Dutch Defence Minister Dilan Yeşilgöz-Zegerius has told Euronews.

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NATO leaders are meeting for their summit in Ankara, where the first day's business will centre around multiple defence investment announcements by NATO countries expected to total hundreds of billions of euros.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has called on allies to translate their commitment to ramp up spending into actual capabilities such as patriot defence systems, drone technology, and ammunition.

“Here in Ankara, I expect nations to present clear, concrete and credible plans to reach that 5 percent goal," he said at a pre-summit press conference. “We will announce tens of billions in new contracts that will provide the crucial kit we need to deter and defend."

In 2025, core defence expenditure by Europe and Canada increased by $139 billion (€122 billion) in a single year, representing a 20 percent increase.

And while most countries are able to demonstrate a credible path to new spending targets, three allies are not yet at the earlier 2 percent target: Albania, Czechia and Slovenia, all of whom will come under pressure to ensure they are spending enough on their own capabilities to confront the reality of modern threats.

“Last year in The Hague, we promised a lot. But it's only worth those promises if you really deliver,” said Zegerius. “Today, I hope that I will see that from my colleagues. And colleagues who are not delivering, I will be talking to them as well, because we have to do this together.”

Zegerius said it was only possible to defeat the Russian threat on the European continent if everyone steps up.

“As you well know, we have a war on our own continent. We have an enemy facing us, Putin, and it's very important that we are also able to stand up.”