The NATO Defence Ministers’ meeting in Brussels focused on increasing defence spending and ensuring that European Allies and Canada take greater responsibility for the defence of Europe. Ministers also discussed strengthening deterrence and defence, expanding defence industrial capacity, and sustaining support for Ukraine. Meetings were also held in the NATO–Ukraine Council format and of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group.
“Estonia has taken its decisions and increased defence spending to 5 percent starting this year. At the same time, it remains critically important that all Allies meet the agreed capability targets and raise defence spending to 5 percent of GDP by 2035 at the latest, as agreed at the Hague Summit. The entire Alliance must step up its efforts to deter Russia and be ready to respond to threats both in the Arctic and from the southern direction,” said Minister of Defence Hanno Pevkur.
According to the Minister, Europe must be prepared to assume greater responsibility for its own defence in the coming years. “Europe remains important to the United States, and strategic transatlantic cooperation will continue,” Pevkur added.
In Brussels, the Minister of Defence also met with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. “We share the Secretary General’s view that, given the persistence of the Russian threat even after a possible peace in Ukraine, Allies must demonstrate clear progress at the Ankara Summit both in meeting capability targets and in moving towards the 5 percent defence spending goal,” Pevkur said.
The NATO–Ukraine Council meeting was attended, alongside Allies, by Ukraine’s Minister of Defence, Mykhailo Fedorov. Discussions focused on the PURL (Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List) initiative, which aims to mobilise USD 15 billion this year to support Ukraine’s military needs. To date, 21 Allies, together with partner countries Australia and New Zealand, have contributed more than USD 4 billion. Estonia’s military assistance to Ukraine in 2025 amounted to 0.35% of GDP and included equipment, ammunition and training worth more than €146 million (operations Interflex and Legio). Estonia contributed €10 million to PURL last year, and the IT Coalition co-led with Luxembourg has provided Ukraine with support worth more than €1 billion. This year, Estonia plans to contribute more than €5 million through the IT Coalition.
The Ukraine Defence Contact Group (UDCG), hosted by the defence ministers of the United Kingdom and Germany, focused on continued support to Ukraine, with particular emphasis on Ukraine’s priority needs and the development of its drone industry.
On the margins of the meeting, a Letter of Intent for Task Force X Baltic was also signed. The NATO initiative aims to create the conditions for the deployment and operational use of unmanned maritime systems in the Baltic Sea region. In addition to Estonia, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Germany have joined the initiative.
Photo galleries: Meeting between Minister of Defence Hanno Pevkur and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte; official photo of the NATO Ministers of Defence; Meeting of the North Atlantic Council in Defence Ministers’ Session