As the Latin saying goes, if you want peace, prepare for a war. That is why, in an increasingly unstable world, the EU must strengthen its own defence, and we must ensure that we are able to defend ourselves. This will not be possible without concrete action and political will, which has been absent for decades among the Member States. But the upcoming tenure of the first-ever European Commissioner for Defence and Space promises to shake the EU out of its lethargy.
More detailed ways of enabling Europe to defend itself have been recently discussed within our political family, the EPP Group, culminating in the adoption of a strategic paper entitled “A Europe that protects: a Europe that stands for true peace, building a true European Defence Union”. The solution is clear: we must take action now, and we must do so decisively, both in the short term and the long term.
To put the scale into perspective, over the past decade, Moscow and Beijing have increased their defence budgets by almost 300% and 600%, respectively. At the same time, EU countries have only increased theirs by 20%. Even now, not all European NATO allies have met the 2% of GDP target. We must step up – it is a matter of credibility. Experts warn that Russia will be able to launch a full-scale attack on the EU and NATO within the next five years. Europe must, therefore, finally take its security into its own hands and become capable and willing to defend itself and its interests. In our strategic paper, we advocate five concrete steps to get there.
First, we need a true European Single Market of Defence. The persistent inefficiency of the European defence market leads to unnecessary duplication, poor effectiveness of defence spending, and thus a waste of European taxpayers’ money. It is far from ideal that EU Member States still procure 78% of their military equipment from non-EU sources. The war in Ukraine also shows that fragmented capabilities and a lack of production and repair capacity lead to long and vulnerable supply lines for ammunition, spare parts and maintenance. A fully-fledged Single Market for Defence should involve substantial investment in our industrial capacity, the involvement of the SMEs, the removal of cross-border barriers and the promotion of pan-European value and supply chains. We urgently need to optimise production through standardisation, mutual recognition of certification and prioritisation. We should integrate Ukraine into our market and favour joint procurement between Member States.
Second, we need to think big and invest in the future of the EU’s defence technologies. We must significantly increase our investment in emerging and disruptive defence technologies, including cyber defence, outer space, novel materials and manufacturing, artificial intelligence, quantum computing, cloud computing, the Internet of Things (IoT), robotics, biotechnology and nanotechnology. In close cooperation with our transatlantic partners, we must also tackle ambitious European projects, such as a common and interoperable missile defence shield, a European nuclear shield, and a DARPA-style European Defence Advanced Research Programme Agency.
Third, we need more defence cooperation and integrated European capabilities. The EPP Group envisages a Defence Union with integrated land, sea, air, space and cyber capabilities, in accordance with NATO, and with the Rapid Deployment Capacity (RDC) as a permanent and immediately available force. Military Mobility needs to be followed up with concrete measures, in particular, a roadmap to achieve a “military Schengen”, guaranteeing military mobility within EU borders. We should establish a fully staffed and equipped Joint Headquarters, combining civilian and military instruments to make full use of the EU’s integrated approach to crisis management, right from strategic planning and operational concepts to the actual conduct of missions and operations.
Fourth, we need more investment, smart regulation, industrial capacity building and better infrastructure. Our ambitions in defence must be met with appropriate funding in the EU’s future multiannual budget. We urgently need to focus on more, better and joint investments. At the same time, we call for less regulation and administrative burdens. The forthcoming White Paper on the Future of European Defence must make concrete proposals to achieve the provisions of the Draghi report, which underlines the need for an additional €500 billion of investment in the European defence sector over the next decade. We need to explore new ways of financing our programmes. This should include a review of the mandate of the European Investment Bank (EIB) and additional VAT exemptions. EIB loans should catalyse private investment in the European defence industry.
Finally, Europe needs a strong voice in the world when it comes to defence and security. For the EPP, the close transatlantic relationship and cooperation with the United States within the framework of NATO remains the cornerstone of our security. However, this does not release us from the obligation that we, Europeans, must be able to defend our own interests by building our own complementary and interoperable defence capabilities. True partnership means shared responsibilities, joint efforts and equal burden-sharing.We cannot stand idly by while the world around us continues to arm itself. The future of European security depends not only on policies but also on political will. It is time for Europe to take responsibility for its defence. The world is watching.
