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With a new target on the table, and several member states still burdened by debt and anticipating high deficits in their current budgets, can the rearmament of Europe threaten social protection? (Photo: Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken)

Explainer

Defence vs welfare: what’s at stake in Nato’s new 5% spending target?

Leaders of the Nato states gather in the Hague on Tuesday and Wednesday (24-25 June), where they are expected to agree to raise their defence spending target to five percent of GDP — except for Spain, which is seeking flexibility for an opt-out.

In a letter, Nato chief Mark Rutte, a former Dutch PM, had...

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