SPAIN has spent 2% of its GDP on defence for the first time in 30 years, finally meeting NATO’s long-standing target more than a decade after the goal was set.
According to a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), Spain spent 2.1% of its GDP on defence spending in 2025 – the first time the country has broken the 2% barrier since 1994.
That represents an increase in military spending of around 50% last year, equating to €34.265 billion in total expenditure.
Over the past decade, Spain’s military spending has increased by more than 122%.
The surge comes after US president Donald Trump forcefully lobbied NATO allies to up their contribution to the security alliance in an attempt to end Europe’s reliance on American defence spending.
Across the continent, investment in defence reached €736 billion, representing an increase of 14% and the largest annual spike in military spending in Europe since the end of the Cold War.
In 2025, global military spending rose by 2.9% in real terms thanks to increased investment in Europe and the Asia-Oceania region.
That marks the eleventh consecutive year of increase, although more than half of the total spending still comes from the superpowers of the United States, China and Russia.
But spending fell by 7.5% in the US, with the drop blamed on ‘no new military financial assistance for Ukraine’ from the Trump administration.
The latest statistics back up figures provided by NATO last year, which suggested that Spain had finally upped spending beyond the 2% target.
In a statement released at the time, Spain’s defence ministry said: “As a reliable and responsible partner, Spain not only responds to the needs of the alliance by providing troops to NATO missions, but also fulfils its commitment to achieve 2% of GDP in defence investments.”
According to data from the defence ministry, some 3,000 members of the Spanish military are deployed under the umbrella of the alliance Spain joined in 1982, seven years after the death of fascist dictator Francisco Franco.
But Spain’s armed forces have little time to rest on their laurels after NATO members struck an agreement last year to spend 5% of GDP on defence and security by 2035.
At the time, prime minister Pedro Sanchez claimed to have struck a last-minute deal with NATO secretary-general Mark Rutte that excluded Spain from the binding collective goal.
In response, Trump threatened to make Spain ‘pay twice as much’ as part of any future trade deal.
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