Opposition Leader Critiques Defense Spending Plan Amid NATO Ambassadors Meeting
The Popular Party (PP) has sharply criticized the government's newly announced defense spending plan, which is intended to meet NATO commitments, labeling it as fraught with inadequacies and urging its submission to Parliament. In a statement made through secretary general Cuca Gamarra, the PP denounced Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez for what they perceive as an incomplete proposal that mixes legitimate defense expenditures with unrelated items. This response comes as Sánchez announced a significant increase of €105 billion in defense spending to align with the NATO guideline of reaching 2% of GDP by this year.
During a video message aimed at journalists, Gamarra described Sánchez's plan as lacking, stating, "A plan filled with holes that falls short of addressing Spain’s security needs," while emphasizing that despite the opposition's previous clamor for this commitment to NATO, they could not guarantee their support for the government’s initiative.
Gamarra accused Sánchez of acting without accountability to the Spanish people, claiming his approach is riddled with deception, stating, "He is the worst possible leader at the worst possible time." She further criticized Sánchez’s alleged authoritarian traits and suggested that he operates unilaterally and fails to engage with the country’s democratic processes.
The PP insists that the government submit its defense plan to Congress through the General State Budgets for 2025, although Gamarra refrained from clarifying how the PP would vote on the proposal. This leaves the potential for broad parliamentary support, not just from the PSOE but even from coalition partners like Sumar and allied parties such as Podemos and ERC, uncertain. Notably, ERC's spokesperson Gabriel Rufián has already expressed skepticism about the plan.
In a counter-response to press inquiries, Sánchez defended his actions by stating that current laws permit him to initiate the outlined spending without parliamentary approval. He explained that NATO measures actual spending rather than budgeted figures, indicating that no new budgets would be required to account for the proposed increase.
Gamarra and PP leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo's criticisms of Sánchez were made during two separate events. While Sánchez was delivering his press conference, Feijóo met privately with ambassadors from NATO member countries in Spain. There, he reiterated that increasing defense spending to 2% of GDP was a necessity and imperative for Spain's national security. During this meeting, Feijóo labeled Sánchez's government as antidemocratic for its lack of transparency regarding the defense budget and for not seeking parliamentary input.
Concerns raised by Feijóo extended beyond Russian aggression, addressing threats from the Maghreb and the Sahel regions linked to jihadism and drug trafficking. He also chastised Sánchez over his recent diplomatic engagements with China, arguing that the goals of the Chinese Communist Party conflict with European and NATO interests.
Despite their criticisms, neither Gamarra nor Feijóo explicitly sought the PP's collaboration in shaping the defense spending plan during their statements, although they have pressed for participatory input in previous government initiatives, including the allocation of European funds and responses to the ongoing crisis caused by the war in Ukraine.
This silence on collaboration suggests that the PP remains critical of the government’s unilateral approach, while simultaneously calling for future administrations to uphold any commitments the current Executive makes. As the defense spending debate continues, it remains to be seen whether constructive dialogue can emerge from the confrontation between the government and the opposition.
Related Sources: