From 2024, Germany will spend at least 2 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) on defense. Since 1991, German military spending has ceased to be such a large part of the economy. In recent years, spending on defense in Germany, just like in the Netherlands, has fluctuated around 1.4 percent.
Dutch defense spending will also increase in the coming years. The government wants to reach the EU average of 1.85 percent of GDP, more than 16 billion euros, by 2024. That is still less than the 2 percent that NATO is aiming for. In addition to the Netherlands and Germany, the European member states Spain, Italy and Norway, among others, do not meet this NATO standard. Countries such as France, the UK and Portugal do spend more than 2 percent on the military. This is shown by figures from the Swedish Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Within Europe, defense spending by Russia and Ukraine is relatively highest, at over 4 percent of GDP.
Saudi Arabia and Oman spend 8.5 and 10.9 percent of national income on defense respectively, making them the countries with relatively the highest military expenditures, according to SIPRI. In absolute numbers, the United States spends by far the most. The country spends about $766 billion annually on defense, which is more than the rest of the top 10 combined. In second place is China with 255 billion dollars. The number three, India, lags far behind with 73 billion. Russia is in fourth place in this ranking, with annual expenditures of about $67 billion.
In an earlier version of this article, Switzerland was also mentioned in the list of countries that do not meet the NATO standard. Although Switzerland spends less than 2 percent of GDP on defense, it is not a member of NATO.