Norway to boost defence spending to 2% of GDP by 2026

Norway's spending on defence as a share of overall economic activity declined following the end of the cold war, but the war in Ukraine has shown the need for a stronger military, the government said. "We have to pay a higher insurance premium.

Norway aims to raise its defence spending to at least 2% of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2026, in line with a long-held goal among members of the NATO alliance, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere said on Tuesday.

Norway's defence spending is this year expected to amount to just over 1.4% of GDP, according to the government's budget projections. Norway's spending on defence as a share of overall economic activity declined following the end of the cold war, but the war in Ukraine has shown the need for a stronger military, the government said.

"We have to pay a higher insurance premium. We need to spend a greater share of our common resources on defence, security and preparedness," Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum told a news conference. Norway shares a border with Russia in the Arctic. It has never been at war with its eastern neighbour.