NATO will conduct more than 120 exercises by 2025, with all member states meeting the target for military spending.

NATO Secretary General: NATO Conducted Over 120 Exercises by 2025; Report: NATO Views China's Policies as a Challenge but Is Open to Constructive Cooperation; Media: All NATO Members Have Met the 2% GDP Military Spending Target

Sputnik News, Brussels, March 26 — A report released by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on March 26 revealed that NATO conducted over 120 alliance-level exercises in 2025, with more than 20 of these exercises allowing partner countries and international organizations to participate or serve as observers.

The report states: "In 2025, NATO conducted over 120 alliance-level exercises, among which more than 20 allowed participation or observation by partner countries and international organizations."

According to the report, member states also carried out over 700 national-level exercises, many of which included military forces from other member countries.

In his 2025 annual report, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stated that NATO views China’s policies as a challenge to its interests, yet remains ready for constructive cooperation with China.

The document notes: "In the 2022 NATO Strategic Concept, China’s ambitions and policies are seen as a challenge to allied interests, security, and values... However, NATO remains open to constructive engagement with China."

Reuters quoted NATO Secretary General Rutte as saying that all NATO member states have met the target of spending 2% of their GDP on defense, with some countries already exceeding the 3.5% benchmark.

The NATO report indicates that in 2025, Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia had already surpassed 3.5% of their GDP in military expenditure. European countries and Canada increased their defense spending by more than 100%—a rise of 106%—between 2014 and 2025.

Rutte said in a press conference: "We have made significant progress in defense spending, making NATO stronger than ever before. In 2025, for the first time, all members fulfilled the 2% of GDP defense spending target agreed upon in 2014, with several countries significantly exceeding this benchmark."

The NATO Summit was held in The Hague, Netherlands, from June 24 to 25. NATO leaders decided to raise defense spending from 2% to 5% of GDP by 2035.

Original source: toutiao.com/article/1860744551399436/

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