If Belgium, as a country with the political and military headquarters of NATO, wants to show solidarity and credibility, it must promise at the NATO summit at the end of June to increase the budget for the alliance to 2 percent of GDP. That is what chief of staff Michel Hofman said in ‘The seventh day’. But it must be clear under what conditions this increase takes place, such as the economic return, said Prime Minister Alexander De Croo in VTM NIEUWS this afternoon.
More than a week ago, De Croo proposed to the core cabinet that defense spending should be raised to 2 percent of GDP by 2035, the so-called NATO standard. According to the current growth trajectory for military expenditure, as laid down in the STAR plan of defense minister Ludivine Dedonder, Belgium would spend 1.54 percent of GDP on defense by 2030.
“More and more parties agree with the increase to 2 percent. Anyone who wants to enjoy the benefits of NATO – Belgium houses both the political headquarters in Evere and the military command center in Casteau, ed. – must also contribute,” says the prime minister. But it must also be laid down under which conditions, De Croo continued. In doing so, he referred to a higher economic return on investments and more attention to, among other things, terrorism or cyber.
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Two percent pledge at NATO summit if Belgium wants to show solidarity and credibility.
Admiral Michel Hofman, the Belgian army’s chief of staff, is also in favor of increasing our country’s contribution to NATO. “Ukraine needs resources to stop Russia’s progress. If Belgium wants to express its solidarity and remain credible, Alexander De Croo must say at the NATO summit in June that we will also invest 2 percent of our GDP in the army every year,” said Hofman. The horizon within which the acceleration of investment will happen will affect the military’s potential, he added.
Watch the full studio conversation with Alexander De Croo (Open Vld) in VTM NIEUWS below:
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