NATO 2019 budget tops at USD 1 trillion


The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is expected to spend $1.036 trillion in 2019, an increase of 6.8 percent from the 2018 estimated expenditure.


NATO 2019 budget tops at USD 1 trillion
(Picture source: NATO)


The most recent 2019 NATO defense expenditure estimates show six countries besides the U.S. will meet a goal of spending at least 2% of their gross domestic product on defense: Greece (2.24%), Estonia (2.13%), United Kingdom (2.13%), Romania (2.04%), Poland (2.01%), and Latvia (2.01%). Those countries coming very close, but missing the mark include Lithuania (1.98%), Turkey (1.89%), and France (1.84%). Those NATO members with the lowest expenditures include Luxembourg (0.55%), Spain (0.92%), and Belgium (0.93%).

The U.S. 2019 contribution is 3.42%, topping the list, with an estimated $752 billion in spending, while in 2014 it was 3.73 percent at $654 billion.

In July 2018, President Trump threatened to pull the U.S. out of NATO. "For years, the United States was being treated very unfairly by NATO but now we have secured a $100 billion increase in defense spending from NATO allies," Trump said at the State of the Union address in February. "Under my administration, we will never apologize for advancing America's interests."