Albares assures that Spain has not proposed any changes to NATO’s spending metrics

Eduardo González Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares assured this Thursday, upon his arrival at the NATO ministerial meeting, that the government's commitment to increasing defense spending to 2 percent of GDP will be made within "the metrics that have been in place up until now" and asserted that there has been "no request from Spain or anyone else" to change them. "With regard to defense spending, there is currently no request from Spain, nor is anyone proposing it," Albares told reporters upon his arrival at NATO headquarters in Brussels. "I don't think we're going to discuss that at all today, any change in metrics," he continued. "The metrics are known, Spain is governed by them, and the commitment we have made to 2 percent is based on the metrics that have been in place up until now," he asserted. The increase in defense spending is the main topic of the NATO foreign ministers' meeting. Several allied countries have set a goal of reaching 2 percent before the next NATO Summit, which will take place at the end of June in The Hague, where this bar will likely be raised by one point, from 2 to 3 percent. In this context, the Spanish government has raised the possibility of including the fight against terrorism, cybersecurity, and border defense within NATO's spending metrics. However, the organization's Secretary General, Mark Rutte, assured this Thursday, also upon his arrival at the meeting, that the Alliance has no intention of redefining defense spending. "We have a clear definition of what defense spending is and we don't want to dilute it; we are strict about that," declared the Dutch leader. In this regard, Albares recalled that terrorism is "one of the threats" to NATO's security and "can hit us, as it has hit several European countries in recent months." "This is recognized in NATO's strategic concept, and it is very important that it remains that way," he asserted. "When we look at the Sahel, we see that terrorism is a threat that is still very much present," he added. On the other hand, Albares declined to specify the timeframe and means (through direct investments in military equipment or by including items that until now had not been included in defense) that the government will use to achieve the two percent defense target. He did, however, assure us that Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez will announce these details "at the appropriate time" and stated that the commitment is "public, explicit, and Spain will achieve it without a doubt." Meanwhile, Albares held a bilateral meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart, Andrii Sybiha, during the NATO-Ukraine Council meeting, also held in Brussels within the framework of the Foreign Affairs Ministerial. “Ukraine wants peace. So do Spain and Europe. Russia must accept an unconditional ceasefire. The principles of the UN Charter, freedom, and democracy, are non-negotiable. Our support for Ukraine remains firm,” the minister declared on social media. Separately, Albares held bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the NATO meeting with his counterparts from Slovakia, Juraj Blanár; Lithuania, Kestutis Budrys; and Romania, Emil Hurezeanu, with whom he discussed European security and support for Ukraine.

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