Beyza Binnur Dönmez
27 January 2025•Update: 28 January 2025
GENEVA
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte on Monday highlighted the urgency of bolstering defense budgets and addressing mounting security challenges.
Citing Russia's alleged aggression against Ukraine and destabilizing actions across Europe, Rutte emphasized the need for NATO members to exceed the 2% defense spending benchmark during a press briefing with Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro after arriving in Lisbon, Portugal's capital.
"Russia is challenging the resilience of our societies with acts ranging from assassination attempts to cyberattacks and sabotage," he said, reminding of a recent disruption to a critical cable connecting Latvia and Sweden in the Baltic Sea.
"We know that the goal of 2%, now set a decade ago, will not be enough to meet the challenges of tomorrow," he said, adding: "To keep NATO strong, we must, however, continue to adapt and to guarantee our security in the future; we also need to ramp up our efforts now. That also means we need to spend more on our defense."
Praising Portugal's contributions, including demining training, involvement in the F-16 coalition, and innovative maritime operations, Rutte warned that Russian threats, including activity off the Portuguese coast, remain a pressing concern.
Montenegro, for his part, said Portugal is open to "further accelerating" its timeline to reach 2% of GDP in defense investment, currently set for 2029.
"We are open to advancing our schedule even further in the trajectory of increasing our investment in this area," he said, noting that this change "will depend greatly on what we are able to achieve internally."
Rutte also traveled to Madrid to meet Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, marking his first visit as NATO chief to the Iberian country.
Regarding the meeting closed to media, he said on X: "Spain plays an important role in our shared security."
He added that his discussions with Sanchez included support for Ukraine as well as alliance's deterrence and defense and "the urgent need to invest more now."
Sanchez, for his part, said that Spain is "serious, responsible, and committed ally" for NATO.
"We will continue to promote all efforts to guarantee peace, supporting Ukraine and defending our common values," he said on X.
