Non-U.S. NATO defense spending rose 20% in 2025
REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo
European NATO
members and Canada increased their defense spending by nearly 20 percent in
2025, Bloomberg reported
on March 26.
A NATO report said additional defense spending rose by $574 billion in 2025 compared with 2024. The document estimates that Poland, the Baltic states, and several Nordic countries now outpace the United States in defense spending as a percentage of GDP.
“The boom reflects the shifting balance within NATO. The United States has long dominated the alliance, but [U.S. President Donald] Trump has doggedly questioned that role and badgered others to ramp up their own militaries,” Bloomberg said.
European governments worry that, after the Russo–Ukrainian war ends, Moscow could turn its attention to them.
“For too long, European allies and Canada were overly reliant on U.S. military might,” the report quoted NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. “But there has been a real shift in mindset.”
Bloomberg reports that Poland, Lithuania and Latvia have
exceeded a new benchmark of 3.5 percent of GDP for military equipment and
personnel. The United States has not yet crossed that barrier, though it still
spends more on defense than all other NATO members combined in absolute terms.
The military war may be swinging in our favor, but the information war continues.
Just as an army needs soldiers, so does a free society need its journalists to ensure that people have access to honest, trustworthy voices to understand the world around them.
For the past five years, The New Voice of Ukraine has been working tirelessly to push back against Russian narratives and defend democracy. But we cannot do it alone.
Please consider supporting us on Patreon for just $5 a month – your donation does directly to supporting journalists and ensuring that this front of the infowar says solid and defended.
Thank you.
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Google News
