Brussels. The EUROPEAN Union’s military spending is expected to reach a new record of 381 billion euros in 2025. The European Defense Agency (EDA) said on Tuesday that member states have allocated additional budgets to stop Russia.

Spending rose 10 percent this year after NATO’s European members pledged to increase spending extensively under pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump. “Europe is spending unprecedentedly on defence to keep its people safe, and this is only the beginning,” said Kaza Kallas, the EU’s foreign policy chief.

According to the EDA, out of this year’s total amount, about 130 billion euros is being spent on investments including new weapons. European countries have increased defense spending after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.

Last week, the European Commission said it had fully subscribed to the 150 billion euro EU loan plan. Which will help member states increase defense spending. Of the 27 member states, 19 have applied to the fund.

This secure plan makes it easier for countries to obtain cheaper loans guaranteed by the EU’s central budget. Western forces and intelligence agencies have warned that moscow could be able to attack a NATO country within three to five years if the war ends in Ukraine.

However, the return of President Trump this year, who has long been critical of Europe’s low defense spending, has added a new challenge to Europe. At a summit in July, the us leader, who is said to be unstable, forced NATO allies to pledge to set aside five percent of their GDP for security spending.

Under this headline target, 3.5 percent of core defense spending and 1.5 percent in sectors such as infrastructure and cyber security have been set aside. “More efforts are needed to meet the new NATO target of 3.5 per cent of GDP, for which a total of more than 630 billion euros is estimated to be spent in one year,” EDA chief Andre Dank said.