The rearmament plan, already discussed in the Commission and approved by the EU Council, constitutes the main pillar of the White Paper, with 800 billion euros of financial resources. These funds come mainly from the relaxation of the Stability Pact, which will allow an increase in defense spending by at least 1.5% of GDP starting from the end of April.
European rearmament serves to continue the war in Ukraine, to manage the rift with the United States and to consolidate the European defense industry. Ursula von der Leyen’s strategy is a game of constant growth, which becomes clearer with each step taken. Yesterday was the turn of the White Paper on Defense, White Paper for European Defense Readiness 2030, where Readiness means “readiness”. So, ready for 2030, in a plan that aims to give a major boost to the European defense industry, to the point of its integration with the Ukrainian one – which today has become the key point of the arms market.
The document was presented by the European Commissioner for Defense, the Polish Andrius Kubilius, and the High Representative for Foreign Policy, Kaja Kallas – the most radical representatives of the military strategy against Russia.
Kubilius also tried to make an offer to Italy and its government, which is hesitant about the rearmament plan, praising the defense industry giant Leonardo as a crucial player in defense and reminding skeptics that this rearmament “will create jobs.” The White Paper outlines a project to strengthen the European defense industry, arguing that this sector has been “underfunded” over time and also restoring the “myth” that Russia’s military spending is higher than that of the 27 EU countries in equal purchasing power conditions. After all, to support the idea that “we need a stronger and more sustainable defense industrial base,” it is necessary to say that the sector is currently weak.
The rearmament plan, already discussed in the Commission and approved by the EU Council, constitutes the main pillar of the White Paper, with 800 billion euros of financial resources.
INCREASE JOINT PURCHASES
These funds come mainly from the relaxation of the Stability Pact, which will allow an increase in defense spending by at least 1.5% of GDP starting from the end of April. This financial package also includes the new financial instrument to support defense investments in member states, called Security and Action for Europe (SAFE), with a potential of 150 billion euros in the form of loans guaranteed by the European budget. “Member states – the document states – are invited to rapidly increase joint purchases in the defense sector, in line with the objective of at least 40% proposed by the European Defense Industrial Strategy (EDIS), also under the supervision of the SAFE instrument”.
These loans will be used to “support the European defense industry” through “joint procurements,” which must involve at least two countries – one of which must be an EU member state. The other country could be:
– Another EU member state,
– A member country of EFTA (European Free Trade Association),
– A member country of the EEA (European Economic Area),
– Ukraine.
EFTA and EEA are broader economic alliances than the EU, including countries outside the Union such as Norway, Iceland and Switzerland. So no involvement of the United States. Instead, joint procurement, especially for the purchase of “munitions or military mobility”, must comply with the requirements of the EDIRPA (European Defence Instrument for Procurement) programme. This programme “aims to encourage member states to jointly purchase defence products” and “strengthen the European Defence Technological and Industrial Base (EDTIP)”. Additional partners that can be integrated into a joint procurement plan must:
– Have an agreement with the EU, or
– Be candidate countries for EU membership, like Turkey.
FINANCING AND RESOURCES
The rest of the plan relies on several key measures:
– Increasing defense investments through the EU budget.
– Increasing the capacities of the European Investment Bank to support the defense sector.
– Involving private capital, particularly through the development of the Savings and Investment Union.
This will be achieved by amending the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR), which sets out the rules on sustainable finance. These rules will be relaxed to allow for the financing of defence projects. The joint acquisition plan is based on seven key areas of defence investment:
- Air and missile defense
- Artillery systems
- Ammunition and missiles
- Drones and anti-drone systems
- Military mobility
- Artificial intelligence, electronic and cyber warfare
- Protection of critical infrastructures and strategic factors.
