Sweden to Boost Defense Spending by 2030, Prime Minister Says

Ulf Kristersson said he was pushing for funds to be ‘high enough to significantly increase the European NATO countries’ ability to defend Europe.’

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson speaks during a news conference in Rome on Feb. 26, 2025. Remo Casilli/Reuters

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said on March 26 that his country is aiming to raise defense spending to 3.5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2030, a larger and faster ramp-up than previously planned.

Defense spending in Sweden has been projected to reach 2.4 percent of GDP in 2025 and 2.6 percent in 2028.

Kristersson said at a news conference that Sweden will meet a new target, with a provisional estimate set at 3.5 percent.

He said the government believes that NATO will soon set a goal for member states to spend between 3 percent and 4 percent of GDP.

“It is difficult to know exactly where it will land,” Kristersson said. “We are pushing for it to be high enough to significantly increase the European NATO countries’ ability to defend Europe.”

U.S. President Donald Trump has said NATO countries must increase defense spending to 5 percent of GDP, from a current 2 percent goal.

European countries have been improving defense readiness to deter any attack from Russia.

“My view is that the stronger the European part of NATO becomes, the more interesting and important it will also be for the United States to cooperate across the Atlantic, and vice versa,” Kristersson said.

The Swedish government also stated that it would increase aid to Ukraine this year, boosting the 2025 budget allocation to 40 billion Swedish krona (about $3.97 billion) from 25 billion Swedish krona.

Kristersson, leader of the liberal-conservative Moderate Party, said the government and the right-wing Sweden Democrats had agreed to help fund the rearmament by raising loans of about 300 billion Swedish krona over a period running to 2035.

“A new and far-reaching security policy situation requires new decisions, both urgent ones and long-term ones,” he said.

Sweden, unlike France and Germany, has low public debt. In 2024, the Scandinavian country eased tight budget spending rules to boost spending on infrastructure and defense.

Sweden has maintained a policy of military neutrality for more than 200 years. However, in March 2024, it ended this tradition by joining NATO.

Poland’s national news agency Polska Agencja Prasowa reported on March 25 that the Polish government had stated that it would become the first European Union (EU) country to use the bloc’s post-COVID-19 pandemic recovery funds for defense purposes.

The National Recovery Plan (KPO) is part of the EU’s 750 billion euro (about $805 billion) post-COVID-19 pandemic recovery fund, from which Poland is set to receive 58 billion euros.

Warsaw wants to direct the 7.2 billion euros that it received from the pot to fund shelters, dual-use infrastructure, and Polish arms companies.

“We are the first in Europe to initiate this project of key importance ... within the framework of the KPO,” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said at a Cabinet meeting on March 25.

“All this averts the danger of war and is an action for peace and lasting security of Poles.”

Katarzyna Pelczynska-Nalecz, Polish minister of development funds and regional policy, wrote on social media platform X on March 25: “We will invest billions in shelters, dual-use infrastructure, and the development of Polish arms companies. We will develop our industry and research into new technologies.”

Norway Says US Steadfast

Tore O. Sandvik, Norwegian defense minister, said on March 25 that the United States remains committed to Europe’s defense.

“We are not experiencing ... U.S. [support] ... collapsing,” he said in an interview with Reuters.

Despite the plans for a more militarily independent Europe, Sandvik said U.S. support for Europe remains steadfast.

“For those who fear that the United States will not be there when needed, the answer is: ‘increased responsibility for your own security,’” he said. “Europe must take a bigger share of responsibility so that the United States lives up to its commitments.”

Norway reached the 2 percent defense spending target in 2024 and plans to double current spending levels by 2036.

The Norwegian government may have to spend more, according to Sandvik.

“We are 2 1/2 months [into] a 12-year long-term defense plan and already we see that we have to revise it,” he said, although he declined to give specifics.

Norway is NATO’s monitor for the 2 million-square-kilometer (about 772,200-square-mile) area of the North Atlantic used by the Russian Northern Fleet’s nuclear submarines.

According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank, the Kola Peninsula in northwest Russia, which borders Norway, is strategically important to Russia.

It hosts Russia’s most advanced Arctic land, air, and naval assets, including its nuclear arsenal and second-strike capabilities.

“We have a good dialogue with the Americans about this collaboration, which is extremely important for them,” Sandvik said.

Reuters contributed to this report.