The US wants NATO members to have a clear plan to increase defense budgets

The United States wants a clear plan from the Allies to increase defense spending. This was stated by US Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker in an interview with Bloomberg Television.

According to him, the Alliance should present clear steps to achieve the 5% defense spending target with an emphasis on "hard defense capabilities," recalling the demand of US President Donald Trump.

"We need something different from the pledge agreed to at the Wales summit in 2014, where everyone agreed to 2% of GDP being spent on defense," Whitaker said.

"We need clear steps to achieve this goal, and at the same time we need to make sure that all our allies understand that this should be about hard defense capabilities first and foremost," the ambassador continued.

Media reports that NATO leaders are likely to sign a new targeted spending agreement during the summit in The Hague, including proposals to allocate 3.5% of GDP to core defense and 1.5% to defense-related areas by 2032.

• On April 3, 2025, Rubio said that NATO member countries, including the United States, should increase defense spending to 5% of GDP.
• On April 4, he said that NATO members should raise more money for defense, because "it's not about money, it's about capabilities".