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Trump’s 5% NATO Goal 'Unrealistic' - German Vice Chancellor

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.

French President Emmanuel Macron, center left, visits soldiers of Operation Barkhane, France's largest overseas military operation, in Gao, Northern Mali on May 19, 2017. - Sputnik International, 1920, 07.01.2025

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"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%.