Spain rejects the 5% NATO defense expenses hike as “counterproductive” | European Union news

The Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez warns that spending hike would undermine EU efforts to build his own security and defense base.

Spain would have asked to withdraw from the NATO proposed Defense expenditure target of 5% of GDPrisking the disruption of a key agreement expected at the top of the alliance next week.

In a letter addressed to NATO secretary general on Thursday, Mark Rutte, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez urged the alliance to adopt a more flexible framework, according to the media.

The letter, seen by the Reuters and the Associated Press press agencies, called for the objective of remaining optional or in Spain fully exempt.

“Building with a 5% target would not only be unreasonable, but also counterproductive,” wrote Sanchez, warning that this would undermine European Union efforts to build its own safety and defense base. “As a sovereign ally, we choose not to do it.”

Sanchez insisted that Madrid does not intend to block the result of the next summit. But any agreement on the increase in defense expenditure must be approved unanimously by the 32 NATO members, giving a leverage effect in Spain to delay or water the agreement.

Spain is currently spending around 1.28% of its GDP in defense, the lowest among NATO members, according to estimates by the Alliance. While Sanchez has undertaken to accelerate the path of the country towards the current objective of 2% of NATO, he maintains that to go beyond that risks harming the welfare state and compromising the broader political vision of Spain.

NATO thrust for higher expenses follows calls by US President Donald Trump And others to share the more equitable burden through the alliance. Rutte suggested a new formula that allocates 3.5% of GDP with basic military expenses and an additional 1.5% to wider safety needs.

Pressure to increase defense expenses

The United States, NATO’s largest military contributor and the main funder in Ukraine since Invasion of Russia in 2022It is estimated that this spent 3.38% of his GDP in defense in 2024. Trump said on several occasions that European allies were not gaining weight and threatened to retain the support of those who failed.

Sanchez, however, said that he rushed to reach a 5% target would force EU states to buy military equipment from outside the block, damaging the continent’s attempts to strengthen self -sufficiency in defense.

The proposal also faces the resistance of the political left of Spain. The left Sumar Party, which is part of the Sanchez coalition, is opposed to this decision, while Podemos, not the government but often a parliamentary ally, also rejected it.

“If the government needs parliamentary support to approve expenses, it will be very difficult for the current situation,” said Josa Miguel Calvillo, professor of international relations at CompalUnTense de Madrid University, speaking to Reuters.

Italy has also raised concerns, seeking to move the deadline proposed for the new target from 2032 to 2035 and to lower the obligation to increase spending by 0.2% per year.

A senior European official told Reuters that Spain’s rejection complicates talks, but that discussions were underway. “It doesn’t look good, indeed, but we are not yet finished. Spain has proven to be an unwavering ally so far.”