UK PM pledges to spend 2.5% of GDP on defense by 2027

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer pledged Tuesday to boost defense spending to 2.5 percent of GDP by 2027 ahead of talks with U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington.

Starmer said the increase would be funded by cutting overseas development aid from 0.5 percent of GDP to 0.3 percent. The UK spent 2.3 percent of its GDP on defense in 2023/24.