Proposed 3.5% defence spending target not reasonable for Belgium, minister says

WARSAW (Reuters) - It would not be reasonable for Belgium to boost defence spending to 3.5% of gross domestic product, Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot told Reuters on Thursday after NATO's chief floated a proposal to adopt a new defence investment target.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has proposed alliance members boost defence spending to 3.5% of GDP and commit a further 1.5% to broader security-related spending to meet U.S. President Donald Trump’s demand for a 5% target, according people familiar with the proposal.

“To be honest, today it's already painful to reach the 2%,” Prevot said, referring to NATO’s current spending target which Belgium aims to reach this year. “We will do it, that's a crystal clear commitment of the Belgian government,” he said.

The country spent only 1.29% of GDP on defence in 2024, according to NATO estimates.

But the minister added that “going above, certainly to 3.5% during the same mandate - it means before the end of 2029 - I do not think it will be reasonable”.

“We know that staying at 2% will not be acceptable. But we have to find a path which will be reasonable, sustainable, in order to avoid also to break the social cohesion,” Prevot said.

(Reporting by Lili Bayer; Editing by Alex Richardson)