Denmark wants to boost defense spending by 20 percent

Denmark's center-right, minority government wants to boost the NATO country's defense budget by 20 percent over the next six years to allow for more troops and hardware, including tanks and artillery, in reaction to Russia's military buildup in the Baltic Sea region.

Defense Minister Claus Hjort Frederiksen says the budget would be increased by 4.8 billion kroner ($760 million) each year until 2023.

The Danish defense budget is currently 21.7 billion kroner ($3.4 billion) or 1.17 percent of the country's gross domestic product. The proposed boost would still fall short of NATO's guideline that member nations spend 2 percent of its GDP on defense.

The proposal, which replaces the current five-year defense budget that ends in December, must be approved by Parliament. No date for a vote has been set.