Trump's 5% NATO Goal 'Unrealistic' - German Vice Chancellor
20250109
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - German Vice Chancellor and Economy Minister Robert Habeck called US President-elect Donald Trump's demand that NATO allies increase their defense spending to 5% of gross domestic product unrealistic, in an interview out on Thursday.
"What Donald Trump is proposing is unrealistic. We will not end up with 5%," Habeck told the Funke media group.
The Greens minister called for increasing defense spending to 3.5% of GDP, stressing that the increase would be temporary.
"3.5% is roughly what is currently being discussed in NATO as a medium-term goal... If we ensure a reasonable level of security for Germany in a few years we will be able to reduce spending again," Habeck said.
In December, Trump's team informed European officials that his new administration would require allies to commit to spending 5% of their domestic industrial output on defense. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said defense spending should be significantly higher than the current 2%.
© Sputnik
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