Brussels – Spain ranked as the NATO ally with the lowest military spending in the previous year, investing only 1.24% of its GDP. This figure placed Spain below Slovenia, Luxembourg, and Belgium, making it one of nine NATO members that failed to meet the 2% GDP target for Defense.
Continuing its history of low military expenditure, Spain again ended up at the bottom of the list in 2024, falling short of the NATO forecast of 1.28%, according to the annual report released this Thursday by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, which reviews military budgets among member nations.
In contrast, Spain’s spending patterns diverge sharply from the overall trend among NATO’s European allies, who saw a significant 19.4% increase in military investments for 2024—marking the tenth consecutive year of growth within the alliance.
While a total of 22 NATO countries reached the 2% military spending benchmark, others like Italy (1.5%) and Canada (1.45%) still have not met the commitments established at the Wales summit in 2014.
On the higher end of military spending, Poland led with 4.07%, followed by the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, all exceeding 3.11%. The United States also contributed significantly with a spending rate of 3.19%. Although contributions from European allies and Canada have risen in recent years, U.S. spending still accounts for 64% of the entire NATO budget.
Regarding the commitment from the Wales summit that at least 20% of the annual budget goes towards new military equipment, all NATO members, except Canada, Portugal, and Belgium, have complied, with Spain dedicating 30.3% of its budget to this goal.
During his presentation, Rutte pointed out that European allies and Canada have increased their Defense budgets by an additional 700 billion; however, he emphasized the urgent need for NATO to “dramatically accelerate” these efforts this year. He stressed that European allies and Canada must significantly enhance their contributions and capabilities, necessitating substantial additional investment.
Targeting 2% by Summer and Future Spending Goals
The updated figures for military spending in 2024 come as NATO discussions are underway to bolster Defense budgets. The aim is for all allies to achieve the 2% target by the leaders’ summit at the end of June in The Hague, before agreeing on a new investment goal exceeding 3% of GDP, as Rutte indicated, with the U.S. advocating for a rise to 5%.
In this context, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced a new defense spending package of 10.471 billion euros this Tuesday, aiming for Spain to meet the 2% GDP commitment by 2025.
Consequently, Spain has expedited its timeline, which previously projected reaching this target by 2029. Recently, amid discussions on the necessity of increased defense spending, Sánchez expressed a commitment to achieving this goal “as soon as possible.” (April 24)
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