Starmer pledges to raise the UK's defense spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027.

Warning of a new era of insecurity for Europe, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer committed on Tuesday to increase the kingdom's defense spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027.

Starmer stated that this represents the largest sustained increase in defense spending since the end of the Cold War, adding that it is necessary because (quote) "tyrants like (President of Russia Vladimir) Putin respond only to strength."

On Thursday, Starmer is set to meet at the White House with US President Donald Trump, who has long questioned the value of NATO. Trump has voiced concerns that the US is providing security for European countries that, in his view, are not fulfilling their responsibilities.

Currently, the UK spends 2.3% of its GDP on defense. Although the government has made statements regarding the target spending figure of 2.5%, it has not specified a date.

Starmer informed lawmakers that the increase in spending would amount to an additional £13.4 billion (€16.6 billion) per year, adding that the goal is to raise defense spending to 3% of GDP by 2035.

To fund the increase in spending, Starmer stated that overseas development aid would be reduced from 0.5% to 0.3% of national income.

Starmer: "We must meet a new era"

This announcement came as Europe seeks to strengthen its collective defense, with Trump continuing to shift US foreign policy and seemingly sidelining Europe in pursuit of a quick plan to end the war in Ukraine.

The Prime Minister proposed sending British troops to Ukraine as part of forces that would ensure a ceasefire with Russia, while stating that support from the US would be necessary for a lasting peace.

Trump has not committed to providing security guarantees to Ukraine, which continues to defend itself against a full-scale invasion from Moscow that has now been ongoing for four years.

We must support Ukraine because if we do not achieve a lasting peace, economic instability and threats to our security will only grow.

"And as the nature of this conflict changes, as it has in recent weeks, it leads to our response becoming sharper; this is a new era that we must face just as we have often done in the past, together and with strength," the British Prime Minister added.

• Ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine "possible" in the coming weeks - Macron

Meanwhile, former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson criticized Trump and his administration's actions:

We are currently experiencing a nightmare: Orwellian phrases about what is happening, accusations against the victims - I have never seen anything like this in my life. To say that Ukraine started the war is like saying that America provoked the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor; it's absolute nonsense, and we must put a stop to it.

The former UK leader called for greater unity on the continent, asserting that this is the only way it can be seen as an equal player alongside the US and other countries.

"If European governments do not genuinely support (Ukraine), the Trump administration will not take us seriously on this issue," Johnson concluded.