THE HAGUE, June 25. /TASS/. The leaders of NATO countries have agreed to increase defense spending to 5% of GDP and commit to the principle of collective defense, without mentioning Ukraine’s accession to the alliance, in an unprecedentedly brief declaration, following the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) summit in the Hague on June 24-25.
"We reaffirm our ironclad commitment to collective defense as enshrined in Article 5 of the Washington Treaty - that an attack on one is an attack on all," the statement reads.
"We remain united and steadfast in our resolve to protect our one billion citizens, defend the Alliance, and safeguard our freedom and democracy," the declaration noted.
"Allies commit to invest 5% of GDP annually on core defense requirements as well as defense-and security-related spending by 2035 to ensure our individual and collective obligations, in accordance with Article 3 of the Washington Treaty," the document noted. "Allies will allocate at least 3.5% of GDP annually based on the agreed definition of NATO defense expenditure by 2035 to resource core defense requirements, and to meet the NATO Capability Targets," it said. "And Allies will account for up to 1.5% of GDP annually to inter alia protect our critical infrastructure, defend our networks, ensure our civil preparedness and resilience, unleash innovation, and strengthen our defense industrial base," the document reads.
