President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been speaking at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos. Making his first public comments since US President Donald Trump's return to office, Zelenskyy urges Europe to unify its security and defence policy, adding that Europe 'must establish itself as a strong global player'. Says Russia's deals with Iran and North Korea are 'against Europe and the US'.
- Referring to Trump's demand that European NATO members raise defence spending to 5% of GDP, Zelenskyy says 'If it takes 5% of GDP for Europe to cover defence, then so be it, 5% it is', adding 'Europe must be able to guarantee peace and security for itself and for others.' Zelenskyy claims that 'Real security guarantees for Ukraine will serve as real guarantees for Europe.'
- The call for 5% of GDP to be spent on defence has divided EU members. Poland and Lithuania back the target, even if they are not yet spending at that level. Others have said 5% of GDP would be unachievable without economically devastating tax hikes and spending cuts.
- French President Emmanuel Macron said on 20 Jan “France currently exceeds 2 percent of GDP for defense spending. But is that enough to achieve the mass, depth and innovation to defend ourselves in a major confrontation? Is that enough to organize ourselves on a European scale and have the means to fight?”, implying he would not opposed further spending increases (albeit coming during difficult budget negotiations domestically).