TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — The leader of the next European Union presidency says that several EU nations which were publicly scolded by U.S. President Donald Trump about their defense expenditure will be reaching a key NATO target next year.

Estonian Prime Minister Juri Ratas said in an interview with The Associated Press on Friday that NATO nations spending 2 percent of gross domestic product could almost double from the current five to possibly nine by the end of 2018, including two other Baltic nations, Latvia and Lithuania.

Pressed by a United States taking on most of the spending in the 28-nation alliance, NATO set the 2-percent target for its members to move toward by 2024.

Estonia, Britain, Poland and Greece are already hitting the mark.