The main entrance of NATO headquarters in Brussels is flanked by two somber memorials that serve as reminders of why we need the alliance. On one side is a section of the Berlin Wall, a symbol of NATO’s defense of freedom and democracy in the face of the Soviet Union. On the other side is a twisted mass of metal from the World Trade Center, a reminder of the only time NATO allies triggered Article 5 of the founding treaty—an attack on one is an attack on all. These monuments underscore how and why North America and Europe have stood strong together in this alliance for more than seven decades. As NATO’s members face an increasingly dangerous world, it is our task to make the alliance stronger, fair, and more lethal so that it continues to keep adversaries at bay.

Russia has brought war back to Europe and has teamed up with China, North Korea, and Iran to reshape the global order. Together, they are expanding their militaries and their capabilities. Even when the war in Ukraine eventually ends, the danger that Moscow poses will not disappear. Russia is reconstituting its forces with Chinese technology and producing weapons faster than we thought it could. This year alone, Russia is expected to roll out 1,500 tanks, 3,000 armored vehicles, and 200 Iskander missiles. Russia could be ready to challenge NATO militarily within five years. And China has become decisive in enabling Russia’s war against Ukraine and supporting Russia’s defense industrial base, even as it, with no transparency, modernizes and expands its own military at breakneck speed. China already has the world’s largest navy; its overall battle force is expected to grow to 395 ships this year and to 435 by 2030. China also aims to have more than 1,000 operational nuclear warheads by 2030. China’s ambitions and coercive policies challenge our interests, security, and values.

We cannot afford to hope for the best; we must prepare for the worst. It is clear that those who stand against freedom are readying themselves for long-term confrontation with NATO. In 1936, the British statesman Winston Churchill asked the House of Commons whether there would be enough time before the outbreak of war for the United Kingdom to put its “defenses in order” or “will the awful words ‘too late’ be recorded?” That is the question for NATO now. The alliance cannot wait idly by; instead, it must undertake efforts necessary to enhance our defenses.

A QUANTUM LEAP

To make NATO stronger means investing much more in its defense, which underpins everything. All allies will spend at least two percent of GDP on defense this year. That fulfills the pledge made at the Wales summit in 2014—a crucial step. For the NATO summit in The Hague, we are preparing a concrete plan for allies to raise their investment in defense to five percent of GDP. This would mean more resources for core defense requirements, as well as investments in future capabilities. This new benchmark is not chosen at random but is rooted in the reality of NATO’s defense plans and the capability targets that stem from them. Five percent spending will be necessary to have the forces and capabilities to implement our defense plans in full and protect the Euro-Atlantic. This will mark a quantum leap in our collective defense.

The new defense investment plan has two parts. The bulk of spending will be put toward core defense requirements. Ambitious new targets, agreed to by NATO defense ministers in early June, define what forces and capabilities allies need to provide. The exact details are classified, but the alliance will need to increase the number of its air and missile defense systems fivefold. The war against Ukraine has made clear how Russia can strike indiscriminately from the skies; at present, air, missile, and drone defenses are in short supply among NATO members. The alliance also needs thousands more armored vehicles and tanks and millions more artillery shells. We must double our enabling capabilities, such as logistics, supply, transportation, and medical support. Allies will also invest in more warships, aircraft, drones, and long-range missile systems. NATO will sharpen its technological edge by spending more in the cyber and space domains, bolstering innovation, and speeding up its ability to integrate new technology into the defense sector.

The other part of the plan supports defense- and security-related investments, including in infrastructure. NATO needs civilian transport networks that can move militaries—to get the right forces to the right place at the right time. Although our aim is to prevent war, should the need arise, roads, railways, and ports will be the arteries in any conflict, providing the flow of forces, munitions, and supplies. NATO is working closely with the European Union on military mobility and defense industrial cooperation. Our societies and militaries are in this together, and the alliance will invest more in civil preparedness and go further to protect against cyberattacks, sabotage, and other threats.

AN INDUSTRIAL RENAISSANCE

Any effort to invest in NATO’s security should include financing and capital improvements to its defense industrial base. It is clear that the alliance is not producing enough. Substantial increases in demand for military hardware must be met with increased supply, not higher prices. Allies must be able to rapidly produce, sustain, and replenish military equipment, including basic munitions, complex weapons systems, and the rapidly evolving new technologies that are the hallmark of warfighting today. Industrial might and military might go hand in hand. Given that NATO needs not only to defend itself but also to deter its adversaries, it must show that it can outproduce and outperform its rivals. That requires an industrial renaissance, not just in defense but across NATO economies. The alliance needs more steel and electricity, just as it needs more tanks and jets.

To make this a reality, NATO is supporting increased defense production, removing barriers to cooperation, harnessing cutting-edge technologies, and fostering innovation. For example, Task Force X Baltic is a NATO initiative to accelerate the deployment of uncrewed maritime systems, integrate artificial intelligence into naval operations, and secure the alliance’s undersea infrastructure. We are also learning from Ukraine, which has shown how new or adapted technologies can sometimes deliver the same or even greater effect as traditional military “heavy metal” at a fraction of the cost. For example, Ukrainian drones that cost $400 have taken out $2 million Russian tanks.

Increased defense spending and production not only strengthens NATO’s ability to deter and defend but also acts as an engine for economic growth. Enhancing and expanding the defense industry on both sides of the Atlantic creates jobs. The NATO summit in The Hague will send a clear message to defense firms that demand for their services is strong, and it is vital that industry meet the alliance’s ambition. Increasing defense spending will require allies to make difficult choices. They will hold vigorous debates about allocating more funding for defense and the tradeoffs that are required. But security is the foundation of prosperity, and there is no alternative to preserve our freedom and way of life.

PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH

NATO will become stronger as its members invest more, better, and together in defense. The alliance will also become fairer as each ally contributes its part. The United States has carried an outsize portion of NATO’s security burden for too long. But America’s allies are clear in their commitment to sharing the responsibility within NATO more equally. European allies and Canada now lead seven of the eight multinational deployments on NATO’s eastern flank. The United States’ allies play a crucial role in long-term support to Kyiv—by providing personnel to NATO’s Security Assistance and Training command for Ukraine in Wiesbaden and a significant share of security assistance. An Italian commander leads NATO’s peacekeeping mission in Kosovo; a French general leads the training and advisory mission in Iraq; and European allies lead NATO’s air policing over Iceland, the western Balkans, and the Baltics. The United States’ allies will do even more for collective defense in the future, backed by Washington’s rock-solid commitment to NATO.

The threats against us are growing, so in addition to ensuring that NATO is stronger and fairer, we also need to become more lethal. That means strengthening our deterrence and defense posture and showing any aggressor that if an ally is attacked, NATO has the ability and resolve to hit back harder. NATO will always be a defensive alliance; the intent of its military might is to preserve peace. But to preserve the peace, we must prepare for war. That is precisely what we are doing at our next summit in The Hague.

Back at NATO headquarters, in addition to the monuments marking the Cold War and 9/11, other symbols capture what the alliance is and why it matters. There is a memorial to those who have fallen in service of freedom and security; an iconic steel sculpture of the NATO star—to remind us of the need to navigate a volatile landscape on the path to peace; and the flags of the 32 nations that come together day in and day out in support of collective defense. Peace through strength is what NATO was made for, and it is the driving force of the decisions we will take in The Hague.