Report from Transnational Institute, Stop Wapenhandel and Tipping Point, with the collaboration of Centre Delàs: “Climate crossfire. How NATO’s 2% military targets contribute to climate breakdown”

Climate mitigation and adaptation efforts are chronically underfunded by billions of dollars, deepening the climate crisis and its impacts on citizens around the world. This has made climate finance one of the most contentious issues at annual United Nations climate summits as the richest countries that bear the most responsibility for climate breakdown have failed to keep even their limited promises of finance for those facing its harshest consequences. At the same time, the richest and most carbon-polluting nations are also increasing military expenditure. Global military spending has reached a record high of $2.24 trillion, more than half of this spent by NATO’s 31 member states, and budgets are projected to increase massively in the next few years.

This briefing examines the impact of one of the key drivers of increased global military spending – NATO’s target for all its member states to spend a minimum of 2% of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on the military, and the related target of at least 20% of expenditure on equipment. It looks at the history of the target, how it drives military spending, its impacts on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, its likely overall financial and ecological impacts in the coming decade, and the arms industry that will profit from it.

Authors: Ho-Chih Lin, Nick Buxton, Mark Akkerman i Deborah Burton

Editors: Nick Buxton i Wendela de Vries

Report ellaborated by Transnational Institute, Stop Wapenhandel and Tipping Point North South, with the collaboration of Centre Delàs d’Estudis per la Pau and IPPNW Germany.

Read and download the executive summary in English, in Spanish and in Catalan; and the full report in English, in Catalan and in Spanish.