Polish President Andrzej Duda has said before heading to a key NATO summit that alliance members must boost spending on defense because “Russian imperialism has returned.”
Leaders from NATO nations meeting in The Hague on Wednesday are expected to approve a hike in spending on core defense needs to 3.5% of GDP, with an additional 1.5% to be earmarked for broader security-related projects.
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Poland’s defense minister, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, told reporters before leaving for the gathering on Tuesday that failure to boost alliance defense spending to 5% of GDP “as soon as possible” would “threaten the security of the alliance.”Amid warnings that Russia, after invading Ukraine, could be planning military operations against NATO member states, leaders in Warsaw and elsewhere no longer assume that the U.S. will automatically come to their rescue.
A steep increase in military spending is seen by many as vital to persuading America to stay committed, or to increasing their chances against Russia should Washington fail to help them.
U.S. President Donald Trump has consistently called on European nations to boost defense spending, lavishing praise on Poland, which is already devoting a large chunk of its budget to defense.
Duda said that if a move to raise NATO spending targets is confirmed “it will be a groundbreaking decision, a historic one.”Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski, who is also attending the alliance’s summit, told reporters in The Hague on Tuesday evening that an agreement on the 5% target looked like a done deal.
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