NATO nation risks Trump's fury as it is 'unsure' it can hit 2% defence spending

There are concerns in Rome over whether will be able to hit 's defence spending target, reports say, which would likely anger . said it would meet the alliance's 2% of GDP on defence target this year, but the government is privately unsure whether that will be possible, according to reports.

The country had planned to boost its defence pursestrings through accounting changes, however reports two Italian officials familiar with the budget talks are not sure whether this will be accepted by NATO or the European Commission. The Italian government expects to face pressure to increase its spending from the and EU at June's summit in The Hague, the anonymous officials told . They also said the alliance and the Commission could challenge the legal justification for the move.

spent 1.49% of its GDP on defence in 2024 - one of the lowest in , official figures show.

Failure to increase the spending is likely to frustrate the President who has regularly criticised the alliance for years.

has said he believes members should be spending 5% of their GDP - more than what any member currently spends, including the .

He previously said he would not defend nations not paying enough for their own defence.

"It's common sense, right," he said. "If they don't pay, I'm not going to defend them. No, I'm not going to defend them."

Secretary General Mark Rutte has also urged alliance members to spend considerably more on defence.

It comes amid mounting tensions with and ongoing concerns over commitment to and European security.

The has unveiled plans to increase its defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027, however critics have claimed the uplift isn't enough.

Several members have confirmed plans to boost their forces.

Earlier this week, , citing the threat posed by .

This includes dozens of new vessels, drones and sonar systems.