Italy is a key NATO ally but must
raise military spending up to the requested 2% of GDP in line
with other members, a high-ranking official in the alliance said
on the sidelines of a defence ministers' meeting Thursday.
"Italy is a very important ally of NATO: it is part of the
nuclear weapons sharing group and it has a crucial role in the
Mediterranean," he said.
"For this reason we think that it must increase its level of
military spending."
The official added that "Italy has historically always been able
to invest in the priorities set by NATO, it does a lot in terms
of research and industrial base, and it has a very complex
budget, so it is hard to make comparisons with other allies."
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