Meeting NATO spending target by 2029 'much too late', says defence chief
Belgium's ambition to increase its defence spending to 2 percent of GDP by 2029 is "much too late", the country's defence chief Frederik Vansina said on Thursday.
In a radio interview, Vansina said he was pleased that Belgium's new federal government was making security a priority again. There is a growing realisation that it is time to "step up our security game", he said.
But the time frame set out by the government in its coalition agreement is far too slow, according to Vansina. Belgium wants to reach NATO's defence spending target of 2 per cent of GDP by 2029.
"There will soon be a NATO summit in The Hague. I think a country that does not reach 2 percent may not even be allowed in the room," Vansina said.
EU sidelining by US 'humiliating'
The defence chief also spoke about the turbulent past few days in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. The fact that the EU was not invited to the US-Russia talks on the war in Ukraine is "humiliating", he said.
"It is humiliating that the security of Europe is being discussed without Europeans," said Vansina. He sees the latest signals from the United States as confirmation that Europe needs to cooperate more closely on defence in order to militarily deter a "potential aggressor" in the future.
'Not yet ready' for European army
The creation of a European army, which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has explicitly called for, is a step for which Europe is "not yet ready", according to Vansina. Instead, he argues for a "strengthening of national armies" and more European coordination.
And while some countries, such as the UK, appear ready to send troops to Ukraine, Vansina said it was too early to talk about Belgian boots on the ground.
"First there has to be a peace agreement"
"We are not there yet, to be clear," he said. "First there has to be a peace agreement. Then we have to see how we can prevent Russia from attacking Ukraine again within a few years."
Belgium might eventually be able to send troops, but only "embedded in a multinational operation, the contours of which are not at all clear today," Vansina said.
Belgian Defence minister Theo Francken and chief of Defence Frederik Vansina during a visit to the defence headquarters in Evere, 11 February 2025 © BELGA PHOTO DIRK WAEM
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