Lithuania vows to keep defence spending at least 5 percent of GDP

Lithuania will remain among the NATO countries spending at least 5 percent of gross domestic product on defence next year, Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevičius said, although the exact amount has not yet been decided, LRT reports.

“We remain and will remain in the 5 percent club. It is still too early to say what the figure after the decimal point will be,” Sinkevičius said after meeting with President Gitanas Nausėda.

Lithuania’s defence budget this year was described as a record, amounting to 5.38 percent of GDP, or nearly 5 billion euros. Negotiations over the 2027 state budget are already under way.

Laurynas Kasčiūnas, chairman of the opposition Conservatives and a former defence minister, said he expected the amount allocated to national defence next year to remain similar to this year’s level. However, he said the percentage of GDP could be lower because of economic growth.

Deividas Matulionis, the president’s chief adviser, said the Defence Ministry would identify the defence system’s specific funding needs during the budget negotiations.

He said the priorities included preparing a fully equipped land division, creating an integrated air defence system, preparing residential and military infrastructure for the deployment of a German brigade, US and other allied troops, expanding training grounds, and strengthening border defence and counter-mobility measures.

Matulionis said Lithuania would have to follow decisions adopted by the State Defence Council in January 2025 to allocate 5 to 6 percent of GDP to defence in 2027 and subsequent years.

“The level of ambition will remain very high. National security remains the country’s most important priority,” he said.

Sinkevičius also said that 30 percent of this year’s defence budget allocations had been used during the first half of the year. He called for the remaining funds to be used intensively, efficiently and transparently during the second half.

Matulionis said the use of Defence Ministry allocations could be faster, but cautioned against making premature judgments about the pace of investment.