European Centre for Counterterrorism and Intelligence Studies, Germany & Netherlands – ECCI
NATO countries would count Ukraine military aid toward new 5% defence spending target
euractiv ـ Billions of euros spent by NATO allies to buy military gear for Ukraine would count as “defence-related” spending under higher new spending commitments, sources told Euractiv.
NATO countries are planning to count fresh money spent on bolstering Ukraine’s military as “defence-related” under NATO’s proposal to raise defence spending targets to 5% of GDP, five sources familiar with internal discussions told Euractiv.
New purchases of military equipment specifically for Kyiv, as well as investment in the Ukrainian arms industry, would be counted as “defence-related” spending by NATO countries under the new spending targets.
That agreement could still be upended in the coming weeks before leaders of NATO countries gather in The Hague on 24 and 25 June for the alliance’s annual summit. A general deal on raising defence spending targets from the current 2% of GDP is expected to be approved at the gathering, although final details of the targets are likely to be worked out later.
The current NATO proposal calls for each member to spend at least 5% of GDP each year on defence – split between 3.5% of GDP on core defence areas like military hardware and soldier pay, and another 1.5% on broader “defence-related” expenses.
Ongoing discussions among NATO officials are focused on what to include in the 1.5% target, such as cybersecurity, infrastructure spending, or resilience goals.
There is general agreement among 32 military allies that only fresh money spent for military support to Ukraine would be counted in the second category, the people said.
According to the current state of internal discussions, the value of the donations coming from existing stockpiles would not be tallied toward the target to avoid double counting money already spent to acquire the gear.
Equipment donated to Ukraine from NATO military arsenals was already counted as part of the regular core-defence spending when initially acquired. Future orders to replace the donated equipment, though, would still count toward the core defence 3.5% target.
Non-military aid for Ukraine from NATO countries, however, would not be counted as “defence-related” toward the alliance spending targets. European allies have provided extensive humanitarian relief aid and civilian funding for projects such as maintaining Ukraine’s energy grid in the face of Russian airstrikes.
Together, NATO countries have spent billions of euros in recent years to equip the Ukrainian military in its fight against the Russian invasion through a combination of donations of existing military hardware, investments with Ukrainian manufacturers and purchases on behalf of Ukraine.
Two sources contended that the move to count financial aid for Ukraine’s military as NATO defence-related spending makes sense, considering that arming Ukraine has a direct and positive impact on NATO’s security.
In recent months, Kyiv’s allies have shown growing interest in spending on Ukrainian arms manufacturers instead making further donations of military gear from their own stockpiles. Sweden, for example, announced last week that it would shift Ukraine aid toward spending money directly with Ukrainian armaments makers and away from donations of Swedish gear.
The effort to purchase directly from the Ukrainian industry for Ukrainian armed forces has become known as the “Danish model”, since Copenhagen launched the idea.
Last year, NATO countries spent €50 billion altogether on all types of military aid. In 2023, the figure reached around €40 billion, according to alliance data.
European Centre for Counterterrorism and Intelligence Studies, Germany & Netherlands – ECCI
