Hegseth Calls on Asia-Pacific Nations to Raise Defense Spending to 3.5% of GDP at Shangri-La Dialogue

S. 5 percent of GDP on security during a speech Saturday at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore. -led regional defense efforts would be moved to the front of the line for expedited arms sales, deep industrial-base collaboration, and expanded intelligence sharing, he said.

Those that do not carry their own weight for collective defense would be treated less favorably. The Shangri-La Dialogue is a defense summit hosted annually in Singapore by the International Institute for Strategic Studies. 5 percent benchmark.

8 percent, Japan is approaching 2 percent under its ongoing defense push, and Australia spends about 2 percent. Hegseth pointed to the Philippines as a successful example of burden sharing. The Philippines hosted the largest-ever Balikatan joint military exercises this year and recorded a roughly 12 percent increase in defense spending last year.

Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro told reporters on the sidelines of the summit that it is especially difficult for agricultural economies to reach the target compared to more industrial nations with an established military-industrial structure.

"But for an archipelago of 7,600 islands where you still have to invest in your basic infrastructure for connectivity, education, health care, it is very difficult to hit," Teodoro said. Malaysian Defense Minister Mohamed Khaled Nordin spoke during a roundtable discussion at the Shangri-La Dialogue on Sunday and said the United States is a very important partner that plays a very strategic role in creating a balance in the Indo-Pacific region.

"But they must also understand that every country faces different circumstances, priorities, as well as constraints," Nordin said. He added that sharply increasing defense spending could come at the expense of development in other sectors, with potential knock-on effects for stability. Newsweek reached out to the White House by email outside of office hours for comment.