German Chancellor Scholz criticizes Trump’s 5% NATO defense spending proposal

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Monday questioned U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s proposal for NATO allies to spend 5% of their gross domestic product (GDP) on defense.

Speaking at a campaign event in Bielefeld, Scholz suggested that such a goal would not be realistic, noting it would consume nearly 40% of the German government’s annual budget.

“Five percent of our GDP would be over €200 billion ($204 billion) per year. Our federal budget is currently less than 500 billion,” Scholz said. “This could only be achieved through massive tax increases or severe cuts to many things that are important to us.”

Germany significantly boosted its defense spending after the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022. Last year, Berlin reached NATO’s current 2% target by allocating more than €90 billion for defense and military procurement.

‘They can all afford it’

Trump, who has repeatedly criticized European allies for not contributing enough to defense spending, said last week that NATO’s goal should be raised significantly.

“They can all afford it, but they should be at five percent, not two percent,” he told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.