Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has asked to opt out of NATO’s proposed defence spending target of 5 percent of GDP, risking disruption to a key agreement expected at next week’s alliance summit. In a letter addressed to NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, Sanchez urged the alliance to adopt a more flexible framework.
“Committing to a 5% target would not only be unreasonable, but also counterproductive,” Sanchez wrote, warning that it would undermine efforts by the European Union to build its own security and defence base. “As a sovereign Ally, we choose not to.” Sanchez insisted Madrid does not intend to block the outcome of the upcoming summit.
Spain currently spends approximately 1.28 percent of its GDP on defence, the lowest among NATO members. While Sanchez has pledged to accelerate the country’s path to NATO’s current 2 percent goal, he argues that going beyond that risks harming the welfare state and compromising Spain’s broader policy vision.
NATO’s push for higher spending follows calls by US President Donald Trump and others to share the burden more fairly across the alliance. Rutte has suggested a new formula that allocates 3.5 percent of GDP to core military spending and an additional 1.5 percent to broader security needs.
Sanchez believes rushing to meet a 5 percent target would force EU states to buy military equipment from outside the bloc, damaging the continent’s attempts to bolster self-sufficiency in defence. The proposal also faces resistance from Spain’s political left, including the left-leaning Sumar party and Podemos.
“If the government needs parliamentary support to approve spending, it will have a very difficult time in the current situation,” said Jose Miguel Calvillo, a professor of international relations at the Complutense University of Madrid.
Italy has also raised concerns, reportedly seeking to shift the proposed deadline for the new target from 2032 to 2035 and drop the requirement to increase spending by 0.2 percent annually. A senior European official said Spain’s rejection complicates talks, but discussions are ongoing. “It doesn’t look good, indeed, but we are not over yet. Spain has demonstrated to be a steadfast ally so far”.