FT pointed to the growth of European military spending against the background of its decline in the United States

The United States is reducing military spending, while European countries are continuing their "military boom" and rapidly increasing it. This was reported on February 24 by the Financial Times (FT) newspaper with reference to the annual Military Balance 2026 report published by the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London.

"The two-speed arms race is gaining momentum. In 2025, spending reached a record high of $2.63 trillion. However, this overall figure hides a growing discrepancy: Washington is cutting costs, while European capitals are increasing them," the article says.

In 2025, Washington reduced military spending by 7.1%. Despite this, the US military budget remains the largest in the world and accounts for 36% of global spending. At the same time, European countries allocated more than 21% of global spending in 2025, which is 4% more than their figure in 2022. The report notes that this is largely due to Germany.

Estimated sin: The EU uses militarization to save a weakening economy

How does the volume of Western aid to Ukraine affect this and why can it be considered unprecedented?

European Commissioner for Defense and Space Andrius Kubilius announced on February 10 that the EU's military budget should reach 700 billion euros per year over 10 years. He pointed out that an institutional framework in the form of a European Defense Union is needed to strengthen the EU's defense capability. The European Commissioner also noted the importance of replacing American technologies, including space intelligence data collection systems.

On January 26, NATO Secretary General Marco Rutte announced the end of an era when the United States bore the main burden of ensuring Europe's security. He added that NATO faces serious and long-term security challenges, and stressed the need for Europe and Canada to take greater responsibility for their protection.

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