South Korea says defense spending 'very high' compared to U.S. allies

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth called for NATO members and Asian allies to increase their defense spending to 5% of GDP at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing in Washington on Wednesday. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo
SEOUL, June 20 (UPI) -- South Korea's Defense Ministry said Friday that its defense spending as a share of gross domestic product is already "very high" compared to other U.S. allies, as Washington calls for NATO members and Asian countries to increase their military budgets.
"Among major U.S. allies of the United States, South Korea has a very high ratio of defense spending to GDP," the ministry said in a message to reporters. "We have continuously increased our defense budget in consideration of the serious security situation, including North Korea's nuclear and missile threats."
"South Korea will continue to make efforts to secure the capabilities and posture necessary for the defense of the Korean Peninsula and peace and stability in the region," the ministry added.
In 2024, South Korea spent $47.6 billion, or 2.6% of GDP, on defense, according to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. That share is higher than Britain's 2.3%, France's 2.1%, Germany's 1.9% and Japan's 1.4%.
Seoul's statement suggested concerns over remarks by U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth earlier this week calling for a "new standard" for allies in NATO and Asia to spend 5% of GDP on defense.
"We expect NATO allies to commit to spending 5% of GDP on defense or defense-related investment," Hegseth said at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Wednesday.
"We now have a new standard for ally defense spending that all of our allies around the world, including in Asia, should move to," Hegseth said. "It's only fair that our allies and partners do their part. We cannot want their security more than they do."
Hegseth also called for Asian countries to increase their spending in remarks at a defense forum in Singapore last month.
"It doesn't make sense for countries in Europe to [spend 5% of GDP] while key allies in Asia spend less on defense in the face of an even more formidable threat, not to mention North Korea," he said at the annual Shangri-La Dialogue.
The defense spending issue looks to be a potentially contentious topic at next week's NATO Summit in The Hague. NATO countries committed to a goal of 2% of GDP in 2014, which two-thirds have reached, but U.S. President Donald Trump has long called for an increase and has been demanding the 5% figure since his reelection.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said last week he expected the allies to agree to the 5% target.
"It will be a NATO-wide commitment and a defining moment for the alliance," he said in a speech at Chatham House in London.
However, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez pushed back on the proposal, which must be agreed to unanimously, in a letter to Rutte this week.
"For Spain, committing to a 5% target would not only be unreasonable, but also counterproductive," Sanchez wrote Thursday, according to El Pais. "It would move Spain away from optimal spending and would hinder the EU's efforts to strengthen its security and defense ecosystem."
South Korea's newly elected President Lee Jae Myung has not confirmed whether he will attend the NATO Summit, which will be held on June 24-25. His office had anticipated a meeting with Trump on the sidelines of last week's Group of Seven meeting to discuss tariffs and defense cost-sharing issues, but the U.S. president departed early.

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