• Stoltenberg to criticize NATO’s current military spending target.
• Suggests increased spending will strengthen defenses and deterrence.
• Highlights the need for peace and increased security.

In his farewell speech later on Thursday, Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg is expected to say that NATO’s current military spending target will not be sufficient to protect the alliance against an increasingly assertive Russia.

“We have to be willing to pay the price for peace. The more money, the stronger our defenses, the more effective our deterrence, the greater our security,” Stoltenberg will say according to prepared remarks.

“The good news is that we have delivered on the pledge we made ten years ago (to spend 2 percent of GDP on defense). But the bad news is that this is no longer enough to keep us safe.”

Stoltenberg, a former prime minister of Norway who has led NATO since 2014, will hand over leadership to Dutch former Prime Minister Mark Rutte on October 1.

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