Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said he believes the commitment to the increased budget will take place this month.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth urged NATO members to agree with the significant increase in defense spending by Donald Trump ahead of the summit later this month.
The U.S. president said NATO allies should increase defense investment to 5% of GDP, higher than the current target of 2%.
"To be a coalition, you have to be the flag. You have to be the position. You have to be the meeting more. You have to be the meeting, stay on the ability to fight with the battle," Hegseth said on Thursday when he arrived at the meeting of the Ministers of Defense in Brussels.
"We are here to continue the work that President Trump started, which is a commitment to 5% of the defense spending of this alliance, and we think that will happen, which will be held at the summit in The Hague later this month," Heggsth said.
To compromise with the new goal, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte proposed that military alliance members increase defense spending to 3.5% of GDP and increase the range by another 1.5% to increase security-related spending.
"We have to go further, we have to go faster," Rut told reporters on Wednesday.
He added: "A new defence investment program will be at the heart of the NATO summit in The Hague."
Al Jazeera's Hashem Ahelbarra said in a Brussels report that it would be "extremely difficult" to reach the 5% target for some European countries, including Spain, Germany and Belgium.
"But they have decided that they will further coordinate their military strategy, especially when acquiring air defense systems, long-range missiles and training their troops, preparing for the potential of any geopolitical change," Ahilbara said.
European NATO members have been steadily increasing their defense spending since Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Ahelbarra said European members were “concerned” that Russia remained “the biggest threat to stability in the region.”
Diplomats say countries are trying to negotiate a timetable to achieve the 5% target.
Rutte proposed to reach the target by 2032, which some countries think is too late, while others think is unrealistic, considering current spending and industrial production levels.
Lithuanian Defense Minister Dovile Sakaliene said on Wednesday that the 2032 target is “absolutely too late, with the latest launch of the 2030 target.
Swedish Defense Minister Pal Jonson told reporters on Thursday that Stockholm also hopes to see the group reach its 5% target by 2030.
Meanwhile, NATO officials estimate that on average, achieving the new target will cost the country 3.5% to 3.7% of GDP.