According to the updated 2016 military spending data, published today by SIPRI, world military expenditure has increased in 2016 by 0.4% in real terms, and is now estimated at roughly $ 1686 billion.

This years's NATO summit will be US President Donald Trump's first. It will be held in May at NATO’s brand new headquarters in Brussels, a city that hosts both NATO and the European Union - two institutions that co-operate closely on their military policies.

It is already clear that the next NATO Summit will be one of the most significant summits in the organisation’s long history – even if the exact date of the meeting in Brussels is not yet clear.

The mass slaughter and war crimes we witness today in Syria merit the highest level of citizen engagement: they demand a worldwide commitment to achieving a ceasefire and opening a process to reach a political solution. The matter could not be more urgent.

The terrorist attack in Brussels is an unspeakable tragedy, and the victims should never be forgotten. However, seeking vengeance through a militarized response will only create more terrorists.

In the Christmas period of last year the Belgian federal government decided to invest 9,2 billion Euro in Defense by 2030. This ambitious en in times of austerity totally unrealistic plan should come into force by the beginning of the next legislative period.

September 21 is the United Nations' International Day of Peace devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace. Vrede vzw calls all citizens and Belgian cities and municipalities which are member of the Mayors for Peace network, to bring this day under active public attention.

On September 4-5 in the normally peaceful little Welsh city of Newport, the latest NATO Summit took place, more than two years after the last summit in Chicago in May 2012.