The draft communiqué, endorsed by all 32 members, will become official when leaders including U.S. President Donald Trump sign it at the summit.
Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez had blocked an earlier version as “unreasonable and counter-productive”. Madrid spent 1.24% of GDP on defense in 2024, according to NATO estimates.
Diplomats said the text now reads “allies commit” rather than “we commit”, allowing Sánchez to argue the pledge is not binding on Spain. “We fully respect the legitimate desire of other countries to increase their defense investment, but we are not going to do so,” he told Spanish television on Sunday.
NATO officials insist larger budgets are needed to deter Russia and to let Europe shoulder more of its own security as Washington focuses on China.
The alliance’s current benchmark is 2% of GDP, but Trump has pressed for a 5% goal, though he suggested on Friday it need not apply to the United States.
Under a blueprint from Secretary-General-designate Mark Rutte, countries would reach 5% by lifting core defense outlays to 3.5% of GDP and spending a further 1.5% on related areas such as cybersecurity and upgrading roads and bridges for military use.
Rutte initially sought a 2032 deadline; the compromise text sets 2035 with a review in 2029.
Warsaw plans to spend about 4 percent of GDP on defense this year, the highest ratio in NATO.
(jh)
Source: Reuters, PAP, IAR