Spain’s prime minister announced Tuesday a $12 billion investment plan to help the nation meet the NATO target of spending 2% of its gross domestic product on defense.
The PM, Pedro Sanchez, said the program centers on technological and industrial spending, hoping to improve Spain’s cybersecurity and telecommunications infrastructure.
Mr. Sanchez said the investments will modernize Spain’s defense, as drones and cyberwarfare remain omnipresent on the world’s battlefields.
The enemy is “also using unmanned drones and paramilitary forces to sabotage supply chains and to cut gas lines and underwater cables. They’re using social networks to issue disinformation and to polarize people and spread disaffection toward democratic institutions,” he said. “They’re using AI cyberattacks and quantum computers to compromise our telecommunications, our supply networks and our public services in order to target our way of life.”
Much of the spending will also go toward military equipment, which Mr. Sanchez said is necessary in the face of Russian aggression in Ukraine. He added that Europe must work to ensure the security of nations outside its sphere.
“The security and stability of Ukraine, of eastern Europe and the Baltic and Nordic countries, is also the security and the safety of Spain,” Mr. Sanchez said. “The people who live in those countries know that [Russian President Vladimir] Putin is serious — and that his words are backed by deeds — and that’s why they look to Europe for protection.”
The PM anticipated criticism of the investment plan, assuring taxpayers that the increases to defense spending would not lead to cuts to social programs or increased taxes. His Cabinet approved the plan, which will be submitted to the EU and NATO for approval, Mr. Sanchez said.
Historically, Spain has allocated far less than the 2% of GDP that NATO targets for defense and has trailed behind other European nations. Spain previously committed to increasing its defense spending to meet the 2% goal by 2029.
If Mr. Sanchez’s plan is successful, Spain could meet the NATO target by the end of the year.
The investment plan comes as President Trump pressures all NATO members to increase their military contributions. In January, he said he would ask all NATO members to hike their NATO defense contributions to 5% of their GDP, asserting that the U.S. had been the world’s police for too long.
Other nations looking to boost defense spending to meet the NATO target include Belgium, Italy and Portugal, which have all announced massive spending plans this year.
