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> To entertain this, though, is there anyone that thinks that if every NATO member spent 2% (or 4%, or 10%) the US military budget would be smaller? Does anyone

> To entertain this, though, is there anyone that thinks that if every NATO member spent 2% (or 4%, or 10%) the US military budget would be smaller? Does anyone think this for a second? What's important is that countries promised to do so—and didn't. And this isn't a sudden thing: the agreement was reached in the NATO summit in Latvia in 2006. (Speaking as a Canadian.)

llm_nerd 2y ago
If we're being precise, Canada made no such promise. It was an aspirational target. The guidance, actually first agreed to in 2014, was that countries would move towards the 2% target. And Canada has indeed moved towards the 2% target, and with some very substantial capital purchases in the near future (icebreakers, subs, massive radar arrays, possibly fighter jets) it will certainly get there. But there was no promise that was broken.
- throw0101b 2y ago
  Even the Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO), which is a watchdog on federal spending, thinks that Ottawa promised to do that amount of spending: > In 2006, NATO member nations set a policy goal to allocate at least 2% of their GDP to annual defence spending. While some countries, most notably the United States, exceeded this target, the majority fell short. After eight years of limited progress, NATO members reaffirmed their commitment to this goal in 2014. Since this time, Canada has consistently remained below the 2% threshold, and as of 2024, it is one of only eight member nations still failing to meet the target, with projected defence expenditures totaling only 1.37% of GDP. * https://www.pbo-dpb.ca/en/publications/RP-2425-020-S--fiscal-implications-meeting-nato-military-spending-target--repercussions-financieres-atteinte-cible-depenses-militaires-fixee-otan https://www.pbo-dpb.ca/en/publications/RP-2425-020-S--fiscal... 2014 was simply was a repetition of what was said in 2006. But: > The alliance members accepted to continue to spend a minimum of two percent of individual national Gross Domestic Product on defence, or where a country is currently spending less than two percent, then to move towards spending two percent of Gross Domestic Product on defence within the next ten years. * https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/corporate/reports-publications/audit-evaluation/evaluation-nato-contribution-program.html https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/corpora... It's been ten years now, and Canada has not hit two percent even if you take 2014 as the starting point. (And I'm aware of all the procurement programs that have been announced.)

llm_nerd 2y ago

If we're being precise, Canada made no such promise. It was an aspirational target. The guidance, actually first agreed to in 2014, was that countries would move towards the 2% target. And Canada has indeed moved towards the 2% target, and with some very substantial capital purchases in the near future (icebreakers, subs, massive radar arrays, possibly fighter jets) it will certainly get there. But there was no promise that was broken.

throw0101b 2y ago
Even the Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO), which is a watchdog on federal spending, thinks that Ottawa promised to do that amount of spending: > In 2006, NATO member nations set a policy goal to allocate at least 2% of their GDP to annual defence spending. While some countries, most notably the United States, exceeded this target, the majority fell short. After eight years of limited progress, NATO members reaffirmed their commitment to this goal in 2014. Since this time, Canada has consistently remained below the 2% threshold, and as of 2024, it is one of only eight member nations still failing to meet the target, with projected defence expenditures totaling only 1.37% of GDP. * https://www.pbo-dpb.ca/en/publications/RP-2425-020-S--fiscal-implications-meeting-nato-military-spending-target--repercussions-financieres-atteinte-cible-depenses-militaires-fixee-otan https://www.pbo-dpb.ca/en/publications/RP-2425-020-S--fiscal... 2014 was simply was a repetition of what was said in 2006. But: > The alliance members accepted to continue to spend a minimum of two percent of individual national Gross Domestic Product on defence, or where a country is currently spending less than two percent, then to move towards spending two percent of Gross Domestic Product on defence within the next ten years. * https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/corporate/reports-publications/audit-evaluation/evaluation-nato-contribution-program.html https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/corpora... It's been ten years now, and Canada has not hit two percent even if you take 2014 as the starting point. (And I'm aware of all the procurement programs that have been announced.)