Brussels (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Leaders of the European Union agreed to do more to strengthen their defences against Russia and other threats by increasing spending and filling voids in their military capacities.
After a one-day summit on defence in Brussels, Antonio Costa, the president of the European Council of EU Leaders, said,
“A lot has been done already, but we need to do more. We need to do it better, stronger, faster – and we need to do it together.”
British PM Keir Starmer and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte also took part in the Brussels meeting.
How will EU leaders strengthen their defence against Russia?
Costa told reporters that the heads of EU nations agreed to concentrate on filling critical gaps in their defences, such as air and missile defence, missiles, ammunition and military transport.
The leaders examined how such priorities could be supported but did not reach a detailed understanding. The European Commission, however, arranged to look for flexibility in the controls it oversees on EU countries’ public finances to drive defence spending more manageable.
How does Von der Leyen plan to boost military spending?
“Europe needs, basically, a surge in defence. And for that, our defence industrial base must be strengthened,”
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen briefed reporters after the meeting.
“For many, many years, we have under-invested in defence. Thus, there’s a great urgency to increase the defence spending with a big magnitude,”
She expressed.
Von der Leyen and Costa stated the EU had many potential defence-financing possibilities, including national spending, an extended position for the EU’s European Investment Bank and private capital.
How did Roberta Metsola push for higher defence spending?
In the meeting, President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola made some very significant statements about the defence strategy and spending of the EU. She appealed to EU leaders to significantly raise the defence spending of the bloc. According to her, Europe needs to spend more on its collective defence for the security and safety of its people. “Europe must be able to keep people safe & secure,” she said.
