Keir Starmer announces boost to British defence spending, on eve of White House visit
British PM says increase would be fully paid for by a 40% cut to international aid
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Tuesday he would increase annual defence spending to 2.5 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2027 and target a three per cent level last seen decades ago, a signal to U.S. President Donald Trump that Britain can help boost Europe's security.
On the eve of his departure to meet Trump in Washington, Starmer told Parliament he was bringing the increase in defence spending forward to offer Europe more support as the U.S. spearheads peace talks with Russia over its war in Ukraine.
Since Trump seemingly abandoned the United States' more Ukraine-friendly approach to Russia's war, blindsiding much of Europe, Starmer and other European leaders have stepped up diplomatic efforts to show a united front to support Kyiv.
"Starting today, I can announce this government will begin the biggest sustained increase in defence spending since the end of the Cold War," Starmer said, adding combined with spending on the intelligence services it would reach 2.6 per cent from 2027.
"We must go further still. I have long argued that … all European allies must step up and do more for our own defence," he said, adding that Britain would set a target for spending three per cent of gross domestic product in the next Parliament, which will convene after a national election due in 2029.
The increase would see Britain spending 13.4 billion pounds ($24.2 billion Cdn) more on defence every year from 2027. Britain's Defence Ministry said it spent 53.9 billion pounds ($97.4 billion Cdn) in the 2023/24 financial year.
Starmer's statement was a clear opening gambit before meeting Trump in Washington later this week, signalling Britain will try to lead other European countries in offering more support to the U.S.-led military NATO alliance — a demand Trump has repeatedly made, suggesting countries should spend five per cent of GDP.
Starmer heads to Washington, hoping to reassure Trump that Europe will provide support and security guarantees to Kyiv if peace talks with Russia are successful.
The British leader has said he is open to British troops providing security guarantees to Ukraine but only alongside other European countries.
Looking for a U.S. 'backstop'
Starmer also wants some form of U.S. "backstop" for any security guarantee from Europe, which, he says, "will be vital to deter Russia from launching another invasion in just a few years' time."
"The U.S. is our most important bilateral alliance," he said. "So this week when I meet President Trump I will be clear. I want this relationship to go from strength to strength."
U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth called it a "strong step from an enduring partner," in a social media post. Hegseth said he had spoken to British Defence Minister John Healey.
Starmer will be the second European leader to meet Trump in Washington since the president stunned allies with his new approach to the three-year Ukraine war.
French President Emmanuel Macron held a good-humoured meeting with Trump on Monday when the two agreed on the deployment of European peacekeeping forces, although the French leader did not get a firm nod that the U.S. would play a role.
But underlining the difference in approach between the U.S. and Europe, Macron also corrected Trump's assertion that European countries had delivered all of their aid to Ukraine as loans, saying countries had given "real money, to be clear."
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has also called on member states to step up defence spending beyond their common goal of two per cent of national output set a decade ago. The next target will be "considerably more" than three per cent, Rutte, the former Dutch prime minister, has said.
Fredrich Merz, Germany's likely next chancellor, has also pledged to significantly raise defence spending if he can form a governing coalition after Sunday's election, but he needs to navigate the possibility of far right and left parties blocking his plans.
With a defence budget of jslightly more than $33 billion in 2024-25 and when spending on the Canadian Coast Guard and Veterans Affairs is added in, Canada hits roughly 1.37 per cent of GDP. Only a handful of countries have a lower percentage in the alliance, Spain and Belgium among them.
Aid group condemns decision
With public spending already stretched in Britain, Starmer said the increase would be fully paid for by a 40 per cent cut to international aid, an announcement he said he was not happy to make but one that was necessary to offer Ukraine and Europe support in a "new era." Starmer also said the U.K. government would remain committed to providing aid in hotspots like Gaza and Sudan, while staying on top of global challenges in climate change and infectious diseases.
The international aid budget will be cut from 0.5 per cent of gross national income to 0.3 per cent in 2027, meaning borrowing levels would not change, Starmer said.
"This is a short-sighted and appalling move by both the PM and Treasury," said Romilly Greenhill, chief executive officer of Bond, a network for organizations working in international development and humanitarian assistance.
Britain last cut its aid budget in November 2020, during the economic crisis resulting from COVID-19, reducing the level from 0.7 per cent of gross national income previously.
With files from CBC News