BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 21. At the 16th session of the Parliamentary Defense Committee, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense of Croatia Ivan Anušić presented the 2026 state budget proposal and projections for the next three years, Trend reports citing the country's Defense Ministry.
In the coming years, special attention will be given to investing in improving the status and material rights of members of the Croatian Armed Forces, announced Anušić.
The proposal plans further investments in the modernization of the Croatian Armed Forces and in improving the status of its personnel.
Minister Anušić and Chief State Treasurer Danijela Stepić presented the Defense Ministry’s detailed budget proposal to the Defense Committee, which includes a range of activities of strategic importance for the development and strengthening of Croatia’s defense system.
The proposed state budget for the Ministry of Defense amounts to 1,626,034,457 euros for 2026, 2,129,021,818 euros for 2027, and 2,263,752,159 euros for 2028. Croatia will continue to maintain a high level of defense investment, with a share of 2.08 percent of GDP in 2026 and more than 2.5 percent in 2027 and 2028.
Minister Anušić emphasized that compared to 2025, the 2026 defense budget is higher by around 281 million euros, or 20.9 percent. “Compared to 2025, the budget in 2027 is planned to increase by around 784 million euros, or 58.3 percent, and in 2028 by around 919 million euros, or 68.3 percent,” he explained.
“The fact that the 2026 budget is 207.6 percent higher than in 2016 shows that the Croatian Government and Ministry of Defense continuously raise standards for Armed Forces personnel and systematically invest in equipping the Armed Forces,” Minister Anušić highlighted.
The Minister noted that in 2025, new strategic documents were adopted — the Croatian Defense Strategy and the Long-Term Development Plan for the Armed Forces of Croatia — along with amendments to the Defense Act and the Armed Forces Service Act. These measures laid the groundwork for further development of the defense system and the introduction of basic military training.
For the implementation of basic military training in 2026, approximately 3.2 million euros is planned, covering medical examinations of recruits, transportation, and other pre-training expenses. The budget allocates 23.6 million euros for five intakes of 800 conscripts each (a total of 4,000 conscripts in 2026), which covers salaries, allowances, clothing, footwear, and meals.
Minister Anušić emphasized that the budget prioritizes the further equipping and modernization of the Croatian Armed Forces. The most significant expenditures relate to continuing and launching new acquisition and modernization programs, including Bradley combat vehicles, the Leopard main battle tank, multirole combat aircraft, Black Hawk helicopters, HIMARS missile systems, Bayraktar UAVs, 155 mm self-propelled howitzers, multipurpose ships/corvettes, medium-range air defense missile systems, coastal surveillance radar systems, modernization of FPS-117 radar, counter-drone systems, non-combat vehicles, and communication and information systems.
Around 640 million euros is planned for these projects under the Equipment and Modernization program, with additional investments allocated to infrastructure, training, and logistics.
Speaking about personnel as the core of the defense system, Minister Anušić stressed: “Investments in Croatian Armed Forces personnel remain a permanent priority. Following a roughly 30 percent salary increase in 2024, the Personnel Management, Education, and Support program for 2026 amounts to about 630 million euros. In the coming years, we will pay special attention to improving the status and material rights of Armed Forces members.”
Regarding the importance of peacekeeping missions, Minister Anušić noted that 50 million euros has been allocated, which is 16.6 million euros more than in the 2025 plan. He also reported that around 25 million euros has been planned for programs supporting civil institutions — including fire protection, Coast Guard operations, emergency medical transport, and search and rescue.
