EU countries should avoid reducing defence spending
According to Euractiv, EU countries should avoid slashing defence spending under pressure from the economic fallout of the coronavirus, the EU’s chief diplomat Joseph Borrell said on Tuesday (13 May), warning that the COVID-19 crisis could spark unforeseen security challenges.
Speaking after a meeting of EU defence ministers, Borrell said it was clear that the pandemic is “very likely to deteriorate the security environment in the years ahead”. The COVID-19 “has brought a new threat,” Borrell warned. It is “a new factor, demanding resources” that “requires a stronger Europe in the world,” he said.
Despite the current emphasis on economic recovery plans, Borrell urged EU member states to secure the necessary funding for Europe’s security and defence.
“It’s especially disappointing considering that defence budgets only recently recovered from the financial shock of ten years ago,” he told reporters after a videoconference that included EU defence ministers, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, and officials from the United Nations and the European Commission.
Ahead of the meeting, EU and national officials stressed that military cooperation could help technological advances in areas like chemical and biological warfare, including hi-tech, resistant clothing and crisis response mechanisms.
Croatian State Secretary Zdravko Jakop, who chaired the EU ministerial meeting, said security risks have not disappeared with the pandemic, urging Europeans to continue defence initiatives such as the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO), and the European Defence Fund (EDF).
These initiatives, including joint military projects designed for crisis response and hybrid threats under PESCO, would be a good platform for improving cooperation and developing operational capabilities for a rapid and effective response to the crisis, Jakop said.
The comments came on the eve of new proposals for the EU’s seven-year budget (2021-2027), which the European Commission is expected to table on 20 May. Talks on the EU’s long-term budget have been blocked for more than a year and the coronavirus crisis has further upset plans to get a deal approved early in 2020.
Cuts to the European Commission’s draft defence budget proposal were already under consideration well before the pandemic hit Europe. Even though defence spending is set for an overall increase, EU officials have repeatedly expressed concerns that the announced budget limitations would undermine EU ambitions to reduce its military reliance on the US. They also come at a time when EU defence initiatives have started to show progress towards more European autonomy.
The Commission’s February budget non-paper already had threatened to hamper flagship defence initiatives more than previous proposals, with military mobility being one of the main casualties.
Meant to ensure seamless movement of military equipment across the EU in response to crises by reducing physical, legal and regulatory barriers, military mobility has so far been hailed as one of the EU’s flagship defence initiatives with few political disagreements across the bloc.
Under the latest budget proposal, the European Defence Fund, which would allow EU militaries to plan, spend and deploy together, would be cut in half from €13 billion to approximately €6 billion.
