Prime Minister Bart De Wever and Defence Minister Theo Francken arrived in The Hague on Tuesday evening for this week's NATO summit, carrying an agreement on strategic defence vision.
“It is crucial to arrive here with credibility, because we haven’t had that for quite some time,” said De Wever.
The commitment to invest 2% of GDP in national defence, promised since the 2014 NATO summit attended by then Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo, remained unfulfilled, but De Wever’s government has now reached a “historic agreement” involving over €30 billion in defence investments.
The Hague summit is focused primarily on increasing defence spending. The allies plan to elevate their contributions to 3.5% of GDP for direct military expenses and 1.5% for related investments.
Member States are allowed 10 years to make these increases, a somewhat longer time frame than originally planned. An evaluation has been set for 2029 to reassess whether global conditions remain as challenging, which could lead to a decision on rapidly revising the 2% benchmark upward or maintaining flexibility.
De Wever highlighted that Member States need to report progress. Each nation is responsible for determining the required resources, maintaining autonomy over their defence strategies.
He emphasised Belgium’s commitment: “We have extensive orders to place; we need to further develop our defence industry, and deepen European collaborations.”
Defence Minister Francken detailed Belgium’s investment areas, including frigates, jet aircraft, additional logistics support, and a second brigade. A crucial focus is enablement— quick troop deployment to NATO’s eastern flank via the Port of Antwerp.
Air defence is the top priority. Belgium plans to purchase Polish Piorun systems for lower-tier defence and NASAMS for the higher spectrum. For ballistic missile defence, the choice is between the US Patriot and the Franco-Italian SAMP/T systems.
Francken stressed that Belgium’s €34 billion defence investment – its most significant in 40 years – is aimed at strengthening its forces to protect peace and security in Europe, not for warfare.
