Estonia Urges More NATO Spending to Thwart Threat From Russia

Ukraine’s allies should raise their annual defense spending to 2.5% of gross domestic product as Russia’s war in Ukraine has stoked fears of its future intentions, a top official in Estonia said.

While Estonia’s government recently agreed a 3% floor, most of NATO’s members have failed to meet a 2% threshold set in 2006. Under the Estonian proposal, a quarter of spending would also go to acquiring new military capabilities, Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu said ahead of a meeting with allied foreign ministers set to start in Brussels on Tuesday.