– We are today putting forward a plan to spend at least 2 percent of GDP on defense by 2026, says Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre. The plan to increase the defense budget must be submitted to Norway’s allies at the NATO summit in Vilnius in July, together with a plan for how the government will achieve the goal. Until now, Norway has been one of the countries that has not had a concrete plan for how to reach the goal. With increasing revenues for the state after the war in Ukraine, the Prime Minister believes that the percentage target is demanding. The government is today presenting the plan to achieve NATO’s target of spending 2 per cent of GDP on defence. Photo: Beate Oma Dahle / NTB – Our economy makes it more demanding to manage according to percentage targets. In a year with extraordinarily high incomes, we must stay the course. We want long-term planning and escalation, says Støre. Large backlog Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum pointed out that targeted investments in the Armed Forces will serve Norway well. – Over time, we have spent less money on society’s insurance premium, that is what the defense is. After February 2022, we wish to strengthen our national defense and our national ability to defend ourselves and our allies, says Vedum. The war in Ukraine has thereby accelerated the government’s plans to reach the agreed NATO goal. – The situation in the Armed Forces and the security situation have meant that we have to re-prioritise, says Defense Minister Bjørn Arild Gram (Sp). Gram says that the defense will receive NOK 11 billion more by 2026, and an annual increase of NOK 3.6 billion. Nevertheless, it will be difficult to get precise estimates for the next few years based on the economy going forward, writes the government in a press release. Pressure from Nato Norway currently spends too little money on defence, based on what Nato expects from its member countries. In 2014, the defense alliance adopted a goal that member countries should spend at least 2 percent of gross national product (GDP) on defense by 2024. In October 2022, the government presented the state budget, in which they allocated NOK 75.8 billion to the Armed Forces. This is an increase of almost 10 per cent from the previous year, much due to the war in Ukraine. – The need for military support for Ukraine is urgent, extensive and time-critical. This is a budget in which we strengthen the Armed Forces and at the same time stand up for Ukraine, said Defense Minister Bjørn Arild Gram at the time. The USA, which itself contributes the majority of NATO’s membership contributions, has been a strong champion of the goal of increasing investment in the European countries. This year, Norway is set to spend 1.43 per cent of GDP on defence, which is NOK 32 billion away from the NATO target of spending 2 per cent, writes VG. In February, talks began between the defense ministers in Nato about new capacity targets within the alliance. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has sharpened the need for more defense and deterrence, according to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. In 2022, Norway used 1.57 per cent, falling below the target. This is shown in NATO’s annual report. During the year, Norway received record high revenues from the oil and gas industry, as well as the high electricity prices which made the defense sector smaller. Waiting for expert advice With today’s press conference, the government comes ahead of the advice they themselves have asked to get from both the Defense Commission and the Total Preparedness Commission. The Defense Commission’s mandate is to assess the various choices Norway can make to safeguard Norwegian security as best as possible. Former Minister of State and State Administrator Knut Storberget leads the work to assess the defense’s choices in a 10-20 year perspective. The 17 members are various subject experts, politicians and partners in working life. The commission was set down in December 2021 by then Minister of Defense Odd Roger Enoksen. The following month, the government set up the Total Preparedness Commission, which looks at the total preparedness resources in Norway. With former defense chief Harald Sunde at the helm, the commission will identify the strengths and weaknesses of the current preparedness system. The defense commission will already present its report on Wednesday 3 May.
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– Norway will reach the two percent target by 2026 – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
