Britain announced a significant boost in military spending on Tuesday, hoping to send a strong message about burden sharing to President Trump before Prime Minister Keir Starmer talks with him at the White House on Thursday.
Mr. Starmer stated that Britain would increase its military spending to 2.5 percent of GDP by 2027, and to 3 percent during the next government's term, which would be by 2034 at the latest. Britain, he added, would pay for the substantial extra spending by cutting back on global development funding.
The Labour government had already vowed to increase spending to 2.5 percent of GDP from its present level of 2.3 percent, but it had not specified a timeline. The change would result in an increase in defense spending of 13.4 billion pounds ($17 billion) per year between now and 2027.
"We must change our national security posture because a generational challenge demands a generational response," Mr. Starmer said in a message to Parliament, which gained backing across the chamber's political parties.
Mr. Starmer stated that the government would reduce overseas development funding from 0.5 percent of GDP to 0.3 percent, adding that he regretted the reduction. "At times like this, the defense and security of the British people must always come first," the prime minister stated.
Mr. Trump has long insisted that European partners pay more for Europe's defense. He claimed incorrectly that the United States provided a vast amount of financial assistance to Ukraine.
However, NATO's secretary general, Mark Rutte, has urged NATO countries to spend "considerably more" than 3% of GDP on defense. Mr. Trump's recent pronouncements regarding Ukraine have fueled concerns that the United States is abandoning its decades-long commitment to Europe's defense.
Mr. Starmer reaffirmed the importance of the transatlantic alliance to Europe's security. That contrasted with the likely incoming chancellor of Germany, Friedrich Merz, who stated following his party's election victory on Sunday that Europe must develop a security strategy independent of the United States.
"We must reject any false choice between our allies, between one side of the Atlantic or the other," Mr. Starmer said, adding that Britain and the United States had a "special relationship." It's a strong relationship. "I want it to get stronger."
The government's aid cutback, which follows a previous cut under Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson in 2020, parallels the Trump administration's dramatic withdrawal from overseas aid. However, Mr. Starmer characterized his choice as a temporary step required by the demanding new security climate.
Elon Musk, Mr. Trump's billionaire buddy, has nearly decimated the United States Agency for International Development as part of his federal government revamp, which he refers to as the Department of Government Efficiency.
The head of the House of Commons foreign development committee in Britain urged Mr. Starmer to reconsider his choice.
Sarah Champion, the leader of the committee, stated that "cutting the aid budget to fund defense spending is a false economy that will only make the world less safe," adding that "conflict is often an outcome of desperation, climate, and insecurity."
Three days after French President Emmanuel Macron, who likewise aimed to portray Europe and the United States as one, Mr. Starmer will meet Mr. Trump. Macron politely disagreed with him on several issues. Mr. Macron clarified a claim made by Mr. Trump that Europe would receive compensation for its assistance to Ukraine.
After he meets with the president in Washington, Mr. Starmer is scheduled to attend a gathering of European leaders in London on Sunday to discuss coordinated security strategies for the continent. Following Mr. Trump's announcement that he would start direct negotiations with Russian President Vladimir V. Putin on a cease-fire in Ukraine, Mr. Macron hosted meetings in Paris last week.
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