(MENAFN) US billionaire Bill Gates has criticized Sweden for ramping up military spending while cutting funds for international aid programs.

In an interview with a Sweden newspaper on Wednesday, Gates expressed disappointment that the country’s new budget does not include contributions to the Global Fund — a key organization combating AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria worldwide.

Commenting on Sweden’s expanding defense budget, Gates said the issue “should be debated more,” asking, “Is this what people want to see, and is it really necessary?”

Swedish Foreign Trade Minister Benjamin Dousa defended the government’s approach, telling a news agency, “If we don’t want our children to speak Russian in the future, we need to have a very strong defense.”

Following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, Sweden ended its long-standing neutrality and joined NATO two years later. The government has since announced a series of defense expansions, including plans to raise the conscription age for former officers from 47 to 70 and to double military personnel to 115,000 by 2030.

Earlier this year, parliament approved an additional 300 billion kronor ($31.4 billion) in defense funding, on top of ongoing annual increases. In June, NATO members agreed to raise their collective defense spending target from 2% to 5% of GDP by 2035.

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