New Threats Justify Raising NATO Defence Spending Target to 5 Percent: Carney

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, middle, takes part in a meeting of the North Atlantic Council during the NATO Summit in The Hague, Netherlands on June 25, 2025. Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press

Prime Minister Mark Carney says Ottawa’s plans to massively increase defence spending is not to please “NATO accountants” but to protect Canadians against new threats.

“With advanced missile capacities, we can no longer rely on our geography to protect us as the global landscape shifts,” Carney said during a press conference after the conclusion of the NATO summit in The Hague on June 25.