Spain’s military capabilities will come under review during a bilateral meeting with NATO in Madrid later this month, in a session known as “Step 3” in the alliance’s defence planning process.
During the meeting, Spain’s defence ministry will present NATO representatives with the Chief of Defence Staff’s capability objectives, planned troop increases, and details of 79 defence programmes currently under development. These projects span land, naval, aerospace, cyber, and information systems.
Among them are 31 Special Modernisation Plans, which include the development of tracked combat vehicles, upgrades to F-100 frigates, new electronic warfare systems, and the acquisition of multi-role helicopters.
The review comes as Spain continues to face pressure over its defence spending commitments. Under the Industrial and Technological Plan for Security and Defence, approved in April 2024, the government allocated an additional €10.74 billion this year. According to defence ministry sources, the full amount has already been executed.
Spain committed at the Hague summit to allocate 2 per cent of GDP to defence, below the 5 per cent target agreed by some allies. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s government argues that allocating around 2.1 per cent of GDP is sufficient to meet NATO’s agreed capability requirements.
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