Bulgaria’s spends 2.05% of GDP on Defense

EU countries that are members of NATO spent an average of 2.5% of GDP on defence in 2025. Bulgaria is below the average level, but at the same time ranks ahead of a number of developed Western European economies, allocating 2.05% of GDP to defence. The country is among the NATO members meeting the alliance’s spending requirements, matching the level of the nuclear-armed France and surpassing Italy.

• Bulgaria will continue to increase defense spending
• Sofia plans to spend €19 billion on defence by 2035

Against the backdrop of Europe’s largest-ever rearmament efforts, Sofia is meeting and slightly exceeding NATO’s target of spending at least 2% of GDP on defence, BGNES reported.

Poland remains the undisputed leader, spending 4.48% of GDP on defence, while the Baltic states also allocate more than 3%. However, many European NATO members continue to hover around the 2% threshold. Bulgaria is among these countries, balancing compliance with its alliance commitments without reaching the extreme spending levels seen in countries closest to Russia.

Edited by Ivo Ivanov

Translated by Kostadin Atanasov