German politicians rebuke Trump over NATO defence spending demand

Several politicians in Germany have pushed back against US President-elect Donald Trump's suggestion that NATO's European members should spend 5% of their gross domestic product (GDP) on defence, more than double the current target.

On Tuesday evening, Trump said that NATO nations were spending too little on defence and complained that "Europe is in for a tiny fraction of the money that we're in".

"They can all afford it, but they should be at 5% not 2%," Trump told reporters at a press conference in Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida.

None of the alliance's 32 members are currently spending 5% of GDP on defence, according to NATO data. Poland is the biggest spender by share of GDP at 4.12%, followed by Estonia at 3.43% and the US at 3.38%.

Ralf Stegner, a member of Germany's Social Democrat Party (SPD) party, called Trump's comments "delusional and absolutely insane" in a post on Facebook.

"We don't need more weapons in the world, but fewer," Stegner told Politico.

Marcus Faber, chairman of the defence committee in Germany's parliament, agreed that 5% was too high. Faber said that NATO countries would have to agree on a new goal beyond 2%, but stated that the target should be 3% and decided by consensus.

Free Democratic Party (FDP) politician Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmerman said: "We are not at a bazaar here."

"Trump, who sees himself as a dealmaker, naturally also hopes that the increased financial commitment of the European partners will benefit US industry in particular. But please don't make up a number out of thin air," Strack-Zimmerman said.

Trump's latest call for NATO members to increase their defence spending is nothing new. During his first presidency, he repeatedly threatened to pull out of the military alliance if European allies failed to boost their spending.

The EU's NATO members have increased their defence spending in recent years, largely as a result of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

NATO estimated that 23 (including 16 from the EU) of its 32 members would meet its goal of spending 2% of GDP in 2024, up from just six countries in 2021. Italy, Belgium, and Spain are among those who are yet to reach the 2% threshold.

Germany will hit the 2% target for the first time this year, after German Chancellor Olaf Scholz promised a complete overhaul of the country's military in 2022, breaking years of taboo against the country investing heavily in its military.

Despite this, officials and reports have repeatedly suggested that Germany's military is unfit for purpose. An annual report released by parliament in March 2024 found that the Bundeswehr was "aged and shrinking" and severely lacked equipment and personnel.

The general consensus in Germany's political establishment is that the nation should either maintain or increase its military spending — with several parties promoting a spending boost as part of their campaigns for the upcoming election set for 23 February.

Green party chancellor candidate Robert Habeck told Spiegel magazine that Germany should aim for 3.5% in upcoming years.

"Geopolitically, it is foreseeable that we – Germany and Europe – will have to take more responsibility for our security, anything else would be naïve in view of the positioning of the USA," Habeck said.

Friedrich Merz, leader of Germany's opposition Christian Democrat Union (CDU) and the man tipped to succeed Scholz as chancellor, on Wednesday said the country would spend more on defence but he would not be drawn on a specific spending target.

"The 2, 3 or 5% (targets) are basically irrelevant, the decisive factor is that we do what is necessary to defend ourselves," Merz told broadcaster Bayerischer Rundfunk.

NATO's new chief, Mark Rutte, has warned that the 2% target is insufficient, and said in December that citizens of NATO member states should accept "sacrifices" including cuts to their pensions, health and security systems in order to boost military spending in Europe.