Part 2/12:
Traditionally, NATO members are required to allocate at least 2% of their GDP to defense. However, as economic pressures mount across Europe, and as tensions with Russia persist, NATO nations are preparing to escalate their commitments.
A crucial aspect of this shift is that billions of euros in aid, military equipment, and industrial support to Ukraine are now being counted toward the alliance's new threshold of 5% of GDP. This adjustment is not merely an accounting tweak; it reflects a fundamental realignment in NATO’s strategy, emphasizing prolonged involvement in Ukraine with less transparent criteria for what qualifies as genuine defense expenditure.