Rinkēvičs: NATO countries have money for defense, but military industry lags behind
Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs, after meeting with Estonian President Alar Karis, stressed the need for the upcoming NATO summit in Ankara to reach an agreement on further support for Ukraine and a clear commitment by member states to spend 5% of GDP on defense.
Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs, following a meeting with Estonian President Alar Karis, noted that many NATO member states have sufficient funds for defense, but the military industry is struggling to keep pace.
Rinkēvičs emphasized the importance of the upcoming NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, where an agreement should be reached on continued support for Ukraine. He also called for a clear commitment from all alliance members to allocate 5% of their gross domestic product to defense spending.
The president pointed out that while financial resources are available, military production capacities and technological development are not meeting demand. This creates challenges both for the modernization of individual countries' armed forces and for strengthening the collective defense capabilities of the alliance.
