Germany met NATO's target to spend 2% of its gross domestic product on defence in 2024, the government said on Monday, though well short of incoming U.S. President Donald Trump's call for as much as 5%.

Germany has met NATO's 2% GDP defense spending target for 2024. This comes despite budget constraints and aligns with Chancellor Scholz's strategy since Russia's invasion of Ukraine. However, long-term military funding remains uncertain,

Friedrich Merz, the frontrunner to become Germany's next chancellor, said defence spending targets should be aligned with actual needs instead of abstract figures, after US President-elect Donald Trump demanded NATO members spend 5% of GDP on defence.

The leader of Germany's conservative CDU, the party's candidate to run for chancellor, said on Tuesday that the nation should focus on efforts to reach existing NATO defence spending targets before discussing any further increases.

Friedrich Merz, the German conservative who is the front-runner to become the next chancellor, downplayed a remark by US President-elect Donald Trump calling for NATO members to more than double defense spending.

BERLIN: Germany met NATO’s target to spend 2% of its gross domestic product on defence in 2024, the government

Germany met the NATO alliance's target to spend 2% of its gross domestic product on defence in 2024, finance ministry sources said on Monday, and finished the year with a reserve of 10.7 billion euros ($11.