NATO Secretary General Welcomes UK's Commitment to Boost Defense Spending

Brussels, October 28 (KUNA) -- NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte welcomed Britain’s commitment to boosting defense spending on Wednesday, describing the country’s role in ensuring security across both sides of the Atlantic as “vital.” In a post on the X platform, Rutte said the announcement of the new budget by British Chancellor of the Exchequer John Helly represented good news, praising the strong commitment to defense it entailed. He added that this step places Britain on a reliable track toward fulfilling the pledge made by all NATO allies at The Hague Summit, namely to ensure the allocation of necessary investments to maintain readiness and the capacity to deter aggression and defend freedom and security.

Earlier on Wednesday, speaking to members of the House of Commons (the lower house of Parliament) while presenting the details of the state budget, Helly affirmed Britain’s commitment to raising defense spending to 3.5 percent of GDP, noting that the details of how this would be achieved would be revealed during the security and defense review scheduled for next year. He stated that the current defense budget had increased by 14 billion pounds ($18.6 billion) compared to the 2023–2024 fiscal year, and explained that the government was also working to increase private investment in defense, including through public-private partnerships. (End) A.R.N. / A.M.S.