Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte has said he sees no discrepancy between the UK’s current defence spending goals and his own push for members to reach 5% of GDP.
The Nato chief would not reveal the deadline for when he hopes Nato allies will reach the target as he spoke at London’s Chatham House.
He said he had a “clear view” on when he thinks countries should get there but said he would keep it to himself.
Countries that do not ramp up defence spending should “learn to speak Russian”, he said.
He had earlier commended the UK for plans unveiled in the strategic defence review last week as he met Sir Keir Starmer at Downing Street on Monday.
Mr Rutte said the UK’s goals to spend 2.5% on defence from April 2027 and then aim to get to 3% over the next parliament were not at odds with his own proposed target for the bloc.
He has proposed members of the bloc spend 5% of gross domestic product (GDP) on defence as part of a strengthened investment plan for the alliance.
The target would require nations to raise core defence spending to 3.5% of GDP, while the remaining 1.5% is to be made up of “defence-related expenditure”.
He said every country is “working in cycles” and that he was “really impressed” with the UK’s plans under the strategic defence review unveiled last week.
“I’ve seen sometimes in the British press that there is the defence review and now there is this proposal I made about the 5%, the 3.5% core and 1.5% defence and security-related spending.
“So then people are saying ‘hey there is discrepancy’, I don’t think there is. Why not? Because every country is working in cycles to constantly update its own defence strategy.”
He said it was not up to him to decide how countries get there, when asked if he believed Chancellor Rachel Reeves should raise taxes to meet defence spending commitments.
“I mean, what I know is that if we want to keep our societies safe… look, if you do not do this, if you would not go to the 5%, including the 3.5% core defence spending, you could still have the National Health Service, or in other countries their health systems, the pension system, etcetera, but you had better learn to speak Russian.”
The upcoming Nato summit would focus on a “credible path” to get to the “longer-term goal” of reaching 5%, he said.
The 5% goal is not “some figure plucked from the air”, he said.
“The fact is we need a quantum leap in our defence. The fact is we must have more forces and capability to implement our defence plans in full.”
While he said the “exact details are classified”, Mr Rutte said there needed to be a 400% increase in air and missile defence.
He said Russia could be ready to use force against Nato within five years.
“The new generation of Russian missiles travel at many times the speed of sound. The distance between European capitals is only a matter of minutes. There is no longer east or west. There is just Nato.”
As he met with Sir Keir in the White Room of No 10, he commended the Prime Minister on the “very good stuff” in the defence review.
“It is not only about the traditional things, of course we need them, like ammunition… there is also drones, innovation, building the defence industrial base. It is really broad, it is really making a big impression in Brussels I can tell you,” he said.
Sir Keir called Nato the “cornerstone of our defence” and the “most effective military alliance the world has ever seen”, adding that the task of the upcoming summit was to make sure it serves that purpose for decades to come.
Sir Keir also spoke to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Monday and the two leaders welcomed efforts by Nato allies to step up defence spending as well as Mr Rutte’s suggestions to further boost it, a Downing Street spokeswoman said.
The boost to the defence budget announced last week will be confirmed by Chancellor Rachel Reeves in her spending review on Wednesday, when she will set out the Government’s priorities for the next three years.
