Norway to meet 5% NATO goal on defense, security spending
PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative photo — A Norwegian Special Forces Sniper team prepares to fire during a night-time sniper stalking exercise hosted by the International Specialty Training Center (ISTC) at Grafenwoehr Germany, June 15, 2022. (U.S. Army Photo by Warrant Officer Patrik Orcutt via U.S. Defense Visual Information Distribution Service)
By Gwladys Fouche and Isabelle Yr Carlsson
OSLO - Norway plans to raise overall spending on defence and broader security to 5% of gross domestic product, its prime minister said on Friday, in line with a planned common goal among NATO states.
Europe is scrambling to boost defences against a potential Russian attack after the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump made clear that the United States was no longer willing to be the main guarantor of Europe's security.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has proposed that member nations should each agree to aim for spending 5% of their gross domestic product on defence and broader security measures when they meet from June 24-25 in The Hague.
"We must do more to secure our country and contribute to our common security with our allies in NATO," Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere told a press conference on Friday.
"Security for Norway is about having a defence that is reliable, that has the right equipment, enough people and good plans," he added.
Norway, which shares a border with Russia, plans to spend 3.5% of GDP on traditional defence, including its financial support to Ukraine's military, and a further 1.5% on broader security, in line with Rutte's proposal, he said.
Norway in 2024 spent an estimated 2.2% of GDP on defence, up from a low of 1.4% in 2022, the national statistics agency (SSB) said in April, and the government said in May it aims to spend 3.3% in 2025.
The Nordic country will probably reach the 5% spending target sometime in the years following 2030, depending on decisions made at next week's NATO summit, the prime minister said.
Asked about Spain's request to opt out of NATO's 5% plan, Stoere said he assumed that work would be done to reach a consensus at next week's summit.
Norway is the only country in Europe that can finance increased military spending without having to borrow more, as it has a near $2 trillion sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, at its disposal.
(Reporting by Gwladys Fouche in Oslo and Isabelle Yr Carlsson in Copenhagen; Writing by Terje Solsvik; Editing by Stine Jacobsen and Kate Mayberry // REUTERS)
