Trump Wants to Deprive NATO Voting Rights from Countries Spending Less Than 5% of GDP on Defense
According to information from the British publication The Telegraph, US President Donald Trump is considering the possibility of radically changing the rules within the alliance.
Donald Trump. Photo: Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images
The discussion is about countries that spend less than 5% of their GDP on defense potentially losing their voting rights when making important decisions. This concerns, for example, issues of alliance expansion, the use of the collective defense article, and conducting joint operations. According to sources, the idea is that countries should not influence decisions if they do not bear sufficient costs.
It is reported that Trump began seriously considering this after NATO allies effectively failed to support the US in the situation in the Middle East.
Also, in Washington, the possibility of withdrawing American troops from Germany is being discussed — this idea emerged immediately after Trump's return to the White House.
However, these proposals have not yet been officially presented in Brussels. Within NATO, all decisions are made only by the unanimous consent of all countries, so similar initiatives could be blocked and lead to tension between allies.
It should be noted, however, that to date, no country in the alliance, including the US, reaches the level of 5% of GDP spent on defense. The largest spenders are Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia (from 4.8% to 3.43%), but even they do not reach this mark. The US itself plans to spend about 3.3-3.4% of its GDP on military expenditures in 2026.