Who Pays for NATO?
The alliance works best when every member carries its share. Here is where things stand.
The Society supports NATO on one condition: that it adds to American power instead of drawing it down. The plainest measure of that is whether allies spend what they promised on their own defense.
In 2014 every member pledged to move toward spending 2 percent of GDP on defense within a decade. By 2024, by NATO's own estimates, 23 of 32 members had done it, a big improvement. Several large economies still had not.
In 2025 members agreed to a new target of 5% of GDP by 2035.
View as table
| Share of GDP, 2024 estimates. Selected members. | |
|---|---|
| Poland | 4.12% |
| Estonia | 3.43% |
| United States | 3.38% |
| Greece | 3.08% |
| United Kingdom | 2.33% |
| Germany | 2.12% |
| France | 2.06% |
| Netherlands | 2.05% |
| Italy | 1.49% |
| Canada | 1.37% |
| Belgium | 1.30% |
| Spain | 1.28% |
At the 2025 summit in The Hague, members agreed to a new target of 5 percent of GDP by 2035, with 3.5 percent for core defense. That is the right direction. The test is whether the money actually gets spent.
- Publish an annual scorecard of every ally against the Hague commitment.
- Tie American force posture and basing decisions to allies meeting their share.
- Push European members to take the lead on Europe's conventional defense, so American forces can focus on the Pacific and our own hemisphere.
More from the Dispatch
All entries
Venezuela and Iran: Two Uses of American Power
The Society backed one and opposes the other. The reason is a single test, and procedure has little to do with it.
Ships for a Sea Power: Rebuilding American Shipbuilding
The country that built more than 2,700 Liberty ships in four years now builds a fraction of one percent of the world's commercial ships. Policy Brief No. 2 sets out how to change that.
The American System: Tariffs and Industry as National Strategy
From Hamilton to McKinley, the United States built its industrial strength on purpose. The tradition is older and more practical than its critics admit.