Defence spending: Which EU countries are on course to hit NATO's 3.5% of GDP target?

Defence spending among EU countries has reached a new record of €343 billion, according to new data from the European Defence Agency (EDA).

Member states increased their investments by 19% between 2023 and 2024.

Military hardware accounts for the largest share of the budget, around €88 billion, up 39% from the previous year.

Defence Research and Development (R&D) spending rose by 20% to €13 billion.

The yearly cost for each EU citizen is now estimated at €764.

Which EU members are on course to hit the 3.5% NATO target?

Data seen by Euronews shows Poland has sharply increased its defence investment to nearly 3.8% of GDP, more than any other EU nation.

Estonia and Latvia follow at 3.3% each, with Lithuania at 3.1%.

At the other end of the scale, Ireland spent just 0.2% of its GDP on defence.

In absolute terms, however, Germany is the biggest spender, with around €90 billion (2.1% GDP), followed by France at nearly €60 billion (2%) and Italy with around €33 billion (1.5%).

All EU member states raised their military budget in 2024, except Ireland, where it dipped to € 1.2 billion, and Portugal, where it fell to €4.1 billion.

How do EU forces compare to the US, Russia and China?

The EDA also compared EU forces with those of the US.

In 2024, Washington invested €845 billion in defence (3.1% of GDP), almost three times the EU total of €343 billion.

Although EU countries collectively have more battle tanks, artillery systems and infantry fighting vehicles, their capabilities are fragmented across different operating systems, the report notes, making them less effective than they could be.

By contrast, Russia (€107 billion) and China (€250 billion) spend less in absolute terms than the EU, but the EDA warns they are likely to achieve greater cost-effectiveness due to lower domestic prices, integrated planning, less fragmentation and lower structural overheads.

Both Russia and China have also increased their defence budgets at a faster pace than the EU has over the last two decades.

No effective deterrence without cooperation, says EDA

The EDA estimates that EU defence investments could reach €381 billion in 2025, "bringing the bloc’s spending to 2.1% of GDP and exceeding the 2% guideline for the first time".

Raising spending from 2% to 3.5% of GDP by 2035 will require an additional €254 billion, bringing total defence expenditure to roughly €635 billion, says the agency.

The EU Commission's Readiness 2030 initiative is planning to create additional fiscal space of up to €800 billion over the next four years to further boost defence spending.

But the EDA stresses that money alone won't be enough: More personnel recruitment will be needed to address "shortages" and ensure that there are enough trained soldiers to operate advanced equipment.

Above all, the agency is calling on member states to step up cooperation - both to spend more efficiently and to ensure that their forces work better together by using interoperable systems and equipment.