STOCKHOLM, June 28 (Xinhua) -- Sweden will increase its defense budget by 20 percent next year, in order to meet the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) target of 2 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the country's Minister for Defense Pal Jonson said on Wednesday.
The defense budget will be upped by 20 billion kronor (1.86 billion U.S. dollars) to reach 117 billion kronor in 2024. For 2025, the government plans to increase the budget by a further 12 billion kronor, Swedish Television (SVT) reported.
"We will reach 2.1 percent (of the gross domestic product) according to NATO's definition," Jonson told SVT.
"This is absolutely necessary as the Armed Forces are facing higher costs due to increasing fuel costs and inflation," Jonson said.
The Swedish government decided to seek NATO membership in May 2022. So far, NATO member states Türkiye and Hungary have yet to ratify Sweden as a member. (1 Swedish krona = 0.093 U.S. dollar) ■
