European Security — 2026-05-12

European NATO Members Surge Defense Spending by 14 Percent in 2026

SIPRI's annual expenditure report, released April 27, recorded European NATO member defense spending at $864 billion in 2025, a 14-percent rise from 2024 and the fastest single-year increase since 1953, per SIPRI researcher Jade Guiberteau Ricard. The NATO Secretary General's Annual Report, published March 26, documented a significant increase in European and Canadian defense investment for the same period. Among the largest national increases, Belgium surged 59 percent, Spain 50 percent, Norway 49 percent, and Denmark 46 percent; Germany's 24-percent rise brought its total to $114 billion, placing it fourth globally. Global military expenditure reached $2.9 trillion in 2025, representing 2.5 percent of world GDP and the highest share since 2009, SIPRI said.

Analysis
Germany's climb to fourth-largest global military spender signals structural budget realignment across the alliance, not symbolic pledging. Belgium's 59-percent and Spain's 50-percent surges likely reflect catch-up from chronically low baselines, and both countries probably remain below 2 percent of GDP despite the headline figures. Per a single Reuters report drawing on SIPRI data corroborated by NATO institutional records, at least 25 members are likely to meet the 2-percent threshold by end of 2026. The acceleration may reflect political responsiveness to U.S. burden-sharing pressure more than durable threat-driven consensus, leaving European commitments exposed to domestic fiscal retrenchment once immediate alliance demands ease.

1 sources

European NATO members surge defense spending by 14% in 2026 - Reuters