Lithuania decides to increase defense spending to 5.5 % of GDP

ATHENS

Lithuania has decided to increase its defense spending to 5.5% of its GDP, local media reported on Friday.

“We have agreed that in the period 2026–2030 we will allocate between 5 and 6 percent of gross domestic product to defense annually,” President Gitanas Nauseda said following the meeting of the State Defense Council (VGT), which includes the country’s top political and military leaders, according to public broadcaster LRT.

Noting that next year’s state budget initially allocated about €2.5 billion ($2.57 billion) for defense, just over 3% of GDP, it maintained additional spending is required to build up additional divisions faster.

Nauseda argued that there are no plans to raise taxes to meet the military spending targets.

Instead, the increase will be covered by borrowing and cutting public spending elsewhere, he remarked.

“The likelihood of Russian military aggression is still real, but it is not imminent. We must significantly step up our efforts to strengthen defense and deterrence and devote more resources to this end,” Nauseda said.

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys has urged other NATO members to raise military spending as well.

“Difficult times require bold decisions and leadership. We call on our allies to follow this lead. The era of passive sit-and-wait strategies is over,” he said on X.

The US President elect Donald Trumps strongly urged NATO members to spend at least 5% of GDP on defense, significantly higher than 2% threshold NATO members agreed previously.

“They can all afford it, but they should be at 5% not 2%,” he said recently.

“We have a thing called the ocean in between us, right? Why are we in for billions and billions of dollars more money than Europe?” Trump added.