By JAMES TAPSFIELD, POLITICAL EDITOR FOR MAILONLINE

Published: 11:27 GMT, 4 December 2024 | Updated: 11:35 GMT, 4 December 2024

David Lammy warned NATO members to ‘get serious’ about defence spending today ahead of Donald Trump’s return to the White House.

The Foreign Secretary delivered the tough message to a meeting of the military alliance in Brussels.

He stressed that the UK was already spending 2.3 per cent of GDP and would push the level up to 2.5 per cent ‘as soon as we can’ – although he stopped short of giving a timetable.

The US president-elect has repeatedly laid into European states relying on America’s might for their security.

At the gathering of foreign ministers, Mr Lammy highlighted Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Vladimir Putin’s role in conflicts around the world as a reason for higher military budgets in the West.

‘We’re living in very dangerous times, and as we look across the world, with war here on our continent in Europe, with the tremendous aggression that we’re seeing across the Middle East, with the hand of Iran so present in the Middle East and with this rising conflict in Sudan and now in Syria, there is one country whose hand is in so much of it, and that is Russia,’ he said.

David Lammy warned NATO members to 'get serious' about defence spending today ahead of Donald Trump 's return to the White House

David Lammy warned NATO members to ‘get serious’ about defence spending today ahead of Donald Trump ‘s return to the White House

Mr Lammy stressed that the UK was already spending 2.3 per cent of GDP and would push the level up to 2.5 per cent 'as soon as we can' - although he stopped short of giving a timetable

Mr Lammy stressed that the UK was already spending 2.3 per cent of GDP and would push the level up to 2.5 per cent 'as soon as we can' - although he stopped short of giving a timetable

Mr Lammy stressed that the UK was already spending 2.3 per cent of GDP and would push the level up to 2.5 per cent ‘as soon as we can’ – although he stopped short of giving a timetable

‘And that is why, as we meet here discussing these important issues, it’s hugely important that we step up defence spending, across Nato allies particularly.

‘In the United Kingdom, we are at 2.3 per cent, heading to 2.5 per cent as soon as we can get there, and we urge all allies across the Nato family to get serious about defence spending.

‘All of our populations require us to understand the tremendous security challenges that we are facing at this time, the time to act is now.’

Ahead of the meeting Mr Lammy also called for Nato to increase military support for Ukraine and step up efforts to deter co-operation between Mr Putin and his allies following the deployment of 10,000 North Korea troops to assist Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The Brussels meeting come as questions continue to be asked about the impact of a second Trump presidency on western support for Ukraine, after the incoming president said he wanted to end the conflict on ‘day one’ of his term.

On Monday, Keir Starmer said Ukraine needed to be put in the ‘strongest possible position for negotiations’.

It was the first time the PM had acknowledged the possibility of a negotiated end to the conflict.

But he also stressed the UK would back Ukraine ‘for as long as it takes’.

The US president-elect has repeatedly laid into European states relying on America's might for their security

The US president-elect has repeatedly laid into European states relying on America's might for their security

The US president-elect has repeatedly laid into European states relying on America’s might for their security

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David Lammy warns NATO members to ‘get serious’ about defence spending ahead of Trump’s return to White House… saying UK will commit 2.5% of GDP ‘as soon as we can’

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