The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) agreed to increase defense spending to 5% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2035, and the U.S. White House suggested on the 26th (local time) that it will demand defense spending increases from its Asian allies.
Karoline Leavitt, the White House spokesperson, responded to a question during a briefing regarding whether NATO's agreement to increase defense spending would affect negotiations with Asian allies, saying, "If our European allies and NATO allies can do this, I believe our allies and friends in the Asia-Pacific region can do it too." However, she noted that specific details would be something President Donald Trump would address.
Earlier, NATO agreed on the 25th in a joint statement adopted at a summit held in The Hague, Netherlands, to increase defense spending for its 32 member countries to a total of 5% of GDP by 2035. This includes a minimum of 3.5% of annual GDP allocated for core defense needs, while up to 1.5% of GDP would be spent on protecting critical infrastructure, network defense, and strengthening the defense industrial base.
According to the Ministry of National Defense, South Korea's defense spending is 61.2469 trillion won, which is 2.32% of GDP as of this year.