Starmer admits that the United Kingdom “has to accelerate” the increase in defense spending

The British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, indicated this Monday that the United Kingdom “has to accelerate” the path of military investment, given the publications that his Executive could reach 3% of GDP by 2029, in light of the security situation on the European continent.

In statements at an event in southwest London, the British Prime Minister stressed that Russia’s position towards the continent, even if the war in Ukraine ends, forces decisions to be made on defense matters.

“We have to be attentive to that, because it is going to affect each and every person in this room, each and every person in this country, so we must step forward,” he assured, regarding the threat posed by Moscow.

This means, as Starmer has pointed out, that “in terms of defense spending”, the United Kingdom “will need to move faster.” In any case, he has avoided indicating whether his Executive will reach the 3% bar before the next elections.

Government sources have explained to the newspaper ‘The Guardian’ that there is no concrete plan to raise spending to 3% of GDP before the next elections and have limited themselves, after Starmer’s statements, to indicating that there are formulas to go faster in terms of military investment.

London stands at 2.4% of GDP in defense spending, according to NATO records, while the pact reached within the organization at the last summit in The Hague establishes spending of 3.5% on direct military investments by 2035, to which is added a budget of 1.5% of GDP for related investments such as cybersecurity or infrastructure.

Precisely, the declaration agreed between the 32 allies includes, at the request of the United Kingdom, a review clause to study the spending plans in 2029 and in light of the situation of the geostrategic environment to decide whether to continue with the Hague commitment.