US asks Australia to increase defense spending

2/6/2025 5:59

U.S. Defense Secretary

Pete Hegseth asked Australia to increase its defense spending to

3.5% of gross domestic product during a meeting with Australian

Defense Minister Richard Marles, the Pentagon said on Sunday.



The defense chiefs also discussed security issues including

accelerating U.S. defense capabilities in Australia, advancing

defense industrial base cooperation and creating supply chain

resilience, the Defense Department said in a statement.



"On defense spending, Secretary Hegseth conveyed that

Australia should increase its defense spending to 3.5 percent of

its GDP as soon as possible," the statement said.



The ministers' meeting on Friday on the sidelines of the

Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia's premier security forum, is only the

second between the security allies since U.S. President Donald

Trump took office in January.



Marles said after the meeting they did not discuss a

specific percentage of GDP to raise Australian defense spending.