ChicagoBlue
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- 10 Jan 2009
- Messages
- 16,843
Emphasis noted, and more of a COMMITMENT than a SUGGESTION.It’s NEVER been a REQUIREMENT and only ever been a suggestion:
The North Atlantic Treaty
www.nato.int
(Emphasis added because you like to post like that)
“In 2006, NATO Defence Ministers agreed to commit a minimum of 2% of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to defence spending to continue to ensure the Alliance's military readiness.”
NATO website
#####
OCTOBER 21, 2020
Ten NATO members now meet 2% defense spending benchmark, but not Germany.
Military spending among the U.S.'s allies in Europe and Canada increased for the sixth consecutive year, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Wednesday.
Military spending among the U.S.'s allies in Europe and Canada increased for the sixth consecutive year, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Wednesday. But Germany spent only 1.57% of gross domestic product on its military, the report said.
Germany’s defense spending was cited as a reason for issuing a directive to pull nearly 12,000 U.S. troops out of the country, although a plan to do so is still being developed by the Pentagon and it is unclear when a withdrawal would happen.
Ten of NATO’s 30 members were estimated to be spending at least 2% of their GDP on their militaries, up from only three in 2014, the report said.
“We expect this trend to continue,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters.
NATO members have been under intense pressure to ramp up defense spending by the Trump administration. It increased by 4.3% among European allies and Canada for the year, Stoltenberg said.
Collectively, NATO members including the U.S. spent roughly $1.03 trillion on defense for 2020, said the report, which was released a day ahead of a meeting of NATO defense ministers, including U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper, where spending will be on the agenda, Stoltenberg said.
In 2014, when allies agreed that all members should meet NATO’s 2% spending level by 2024, only the U.S., Greece and the United Kingdom were in compliance. Now, NATO data shows Romania, Estonia, Latvia, Poland, Lithuania, France and Norway meeting the target.