Prime Minister Alexander De Croo wants to be able to go to the NATO summit in Madrid at the end of this month with the news that Belgium will finally increase defense spending to 2 percent of GDP by 2035, following several other European member states who, spurred on by the Russian Federation invasion of Ukraine, release extra money for defense. The Prime Minister does, however, attach conditions to this, such as a more efficient division of tasks at European level and a better social return.
Within Vivaldi, however, not everyone is equally enthusiastic about a further increase in the defense budget. The federal deputy prime ministers discussed the file again at the core cabinet on Tuesday evening, but an agreement has not yet been reached.
