NATO Secretary General’s Annual Report shows significant increase in defence investment from Europe and Canada

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On Thursday (26 March 2026), at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte presented his 2025 Annual Report.

At last year’s Summit in The Hague, Allies agreed to raise defence investment to 5% of GDP.

With a 20% increase in defence spending, compared to 2024, the newly-released data confirmed that European Allies and Canada had made a major step forward.

“The figures in the report speak for themselves.” Mr Rutte said. “We have made significant progress on defence investment, and NATO is stronger today than it has ever been.”

For the first time, all Allies reported defence expenditure that met or exceeded the 2014 target of 2% of GDP. Noting this, the Secretary General commended NATO members for their robust response to a changed security environment.

“For too long, European Allies and Canada were over-reliant on US military might. We did not take enough responsibility for our own security. But there has been a real shift in mindset… And as a European, I am proud of what we are doing – the tremendous progress being made.”

The Secretary General also referenced milestones from an historic year for the Alliance.

He highlighted the creation of Baltic Sentry, to better guard against potential threats to undersea infrastructure, and Eastern Sentry, which further strengthened Allied deterrence along the eastern flank.

Finally, Mr Rutte underscored the importance of Allied support to Ukraine in 2025 and beyond, describing the security of both as “closely connected”. He praised the ongoing impact of JATEC - the first ever joint NATO-Ukraine centre, and the Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) - providing billions of Euros worth of vital American military hardware, paid for by Allies and partners - as examples of that steadfast support.