British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced today that the UK will increase its defense spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027, with a further target of 3% by 2034, in what he called a response to a “generational challenge” facing Europe. The declaration comes just two days before Starmer is scheduled to meet with US President Donald Trump at the White House.

The spending increase, amounting to an additional £13.4 billion ($17 billion) annually for defense, will be funded by cutting Britain’s overseas development aid from 0.5% to 0.3% of GDP.

“We must change our national security posture because a generational challenge demands a generational response,” Starmer told Parliament. “At times like this, the defense and security of the British people must always come first.”

Starmer’s announcement is widely seen as an attempt to send a signal about burden sharing to President Trump, who has long demanded that European allies contribute more to Europe’s defense. Trump has repeatedly questioned the value of NATO and complained that the United States provides security to European countries that don’t pull their weight.

The timing is particularly significant as European leaders scramble to respond to Trump’s direct talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin over ending Ukraine’s three-year war, discussions conducted without Ukrainian or European participation.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte recently called on alliance members to spend “considerably more” than 3% of economic output on defense, a threshold that few NATO countries currently meet.

Starmer emphasized the UK’s commitment to supporting Ukraine. “We must stand by Ukraine, because if we do not achieve a lasting peace, then the economic instability and threats to our security will only grow,” he said, adding that “tyrants like Putin only respond to strength.”

The Prime Minister has offered to send British troops to Ukraine as part of a force to safeguard a potential ceasefire under a plan being championed by the UK and France. However, he has acknowledged that an American “backstop” would be necessary to ensure lasting peace.

Starmer’s position contrasts with that of Friedrich Merz, likely to become Germany’s next chancellor, who stated after his party’s election victory on Sunday that Europe would need to develop a security strategy independent of the United States.

The British Prime Minister explicitly rejected this approach, reiterating the centrality of NATO and the transatlantic alliance to Europe’s security. “We must reject any false choice between our allies, between one side of the Atlantic and the other,” he stated, adding that he would tell Trump: “I want this relationship to go from strength to strength.”

Starmer’s center-left government has been seeking closer defense cooperation with Europe as part of a “reset” with the European Union after years of tension following Brexit. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk indicated that he expected to be in London with other European leaders this Sunday to discuss next steps following Starmer’s meeting with Trump.

According to Starmer, this increase represents the “biggest sustained increase in defense spending since the end of the Cold War.” The UK currently spends 2.3% of GDP on defense, already exceeding NATO’s official 2% target that many alliance members struggle to meet.