UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer cuts foreign aid budget to boost defence spending | BBC News

UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has set out plans to increase defence spending to 2.5% of national income by 2027, as peace talks to end the war in Ukraine gather pace.

The PM said he would cut the UK's international aid budget to fund the rise in defence spending, which is currently 2.3% of GDP.

Opposition parties welcomed the move to spend more on defence but the aid cuts were branded "a betrayal" by charities.

The announcement comes ahead of a meeting between Starmer and US President Donald Trump at the White House on Thursday.

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Post from BBC News on February 25, 2025