Britain will spend 2.5% of GDP on defence by 2030, Rishi Sunak is to vow as he visits Warsaw and Berlin for talks with NATO allies on rising threats

Rishi Sunak today committed to spending 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence by 2030 as he holds talks with NATO allies.

The PM made the firm pledge as he visited Warsaw, warning that the world is the 'most volatile' for years. 

But it is unlikely to appease many on the Conservative benches who have been pushing for at least 3 per cent. 

Sounding the alarm that Vladimir Putin 'will not stop at the Polish border' if his assault on Ukraine is not thwarted, the premier has announced £500million in extra military funding and the UK's largest-ever donation of key equipment.

Mr Sunak will then travel to Germany to hold one-on-one talks with Chancellor Olaf Scholz tomorrow.

At a joint appearance with Mr Stoltenberg at a military base in Warsaw, Mr Sunak said the UK defence budget will increase immediately and then rise steadily to reach £87billion at the end the decade.

'In a world that is the most dangerous it has been since the end of the Cold War, we cannot be complacent,' he said.

'As our adversaries align, we must do more to defend our country, our interests, and our values.

'That is why today I am announcing the biggest strengthening of our national defence for a generation.

'We will increase defence spending to a new baseline of 2.5 per cent of GDP by 2030 – a plan that delivers an additional £75billion for defence by the end of the decade and secures our place as by far the largest defence power in Europe.

'Today is a turning point for European security and a landmark moment in the defence of the United Kingdom.

'It is a generational investment in British security and British prosperity, which makes us safer at home and stronger abroad.'

The premier said: 'Defending Ukraine against Russia's brutal ambitions is vital for our security and for all of Europe. If Putin is allowed to succeed in this war of aggression, he will not stop at the Polish border.'

The 2.5 per cent commitment - higher than the 2 per cent threshold demanded of NATO countries - matches a promise made by Boris Johnson in 2022.

However, Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt had shied away from adopting the vow up to now, with the public finances under huge strain. 

At present, around 2.3 per cent of GDP annually is being spent, which equates to around £52billion. 

Tory MPs have been clamouring for more investment amid mounting threats from Russia and concerns about China's intentions. 

Earlier this month Mr Johnson suggested the government should go even further, with a rise to 3 per cent by 2030. 

He told a conference in Canada: 'Now is the moment for an even more robust posture. We all need to recognise the world is more uncertain, more dangerous.

'We all need, frankly, to be spending more on defence – that goes for the UK as well as everybody else.'

Calling for Ukraine to be allowed to join Nato and be given the tools to defeat Russia on the battlefield, he insisted that the country had chosen its path to be a 'free, independent European nation'.