invest together, more, better, creating pan-European market

Facts

17:36, 05.03.2024

3 min read

The first European Defence Industrial Strategy in the history of the European Union is aimed at high-quality pan-European development of the defense-industrial complex with full integration of Ukraine.

Thus, on Tuesday in Brussels, at a press conference after the meeting of the Board of the European Commission, European Commission Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager outlined the essence of the approved document. “We want to invest more, we should invest better, which largely means investing together, and investing European,” she said.

Vestager also said that the second document that was adopted – the Defense Industry Programme – “will take over the role of the instrument that we have set up in response to the war,” referring to the decision already in progress to increase ammunitions production.

A legal framework will also be created that will encourage member states to cooperate more closely through common procurements or joint life cycle management of defense products. “Lastly, we will enable member states to set up European defense projects of common interest, so that they can join forces in strategic projects that no country can do on their own. To support this, the programme has an initial budget of EUR 1.5 billion… We propose to achieve the goal by 2030 to procure 40% of equipment in a collaborative manner and to procure 50% of equipment within the European Union,” the European Commission Vice-President said, outlining the established goals.

Vestager, pointing to the upcoming U.S. elections, said it was necessary to “get the transatlantic balance right irrespective of the elections dynamics in the United States.” “We must take more responsibility for our own security while remaining fully committed to our NATO alliance. And an improved ability to act will make us a stronger ally,” she said.

The Vice-President also spoke of the need to ensure a “real pan-European defense market” with opportunities for innovative companies from the civilian sector whose products “can help give our militaries an edge.” “The programme that we present today tackle this head-on by incentivizing cross-border cooperation and putting a strong emphasis on boosting the role of SMEs and SMID caps. We’ll do that through dedicated funding,” Vestager said.

She reiterated the European Commission’s plans to “fully integrate the Ukrainian defense industry into this ecosystem.” “We’ve seen how technological breakthroughs can help give an edge on the battleground. Our new defense innovation office in Kyiv will help us to meet advancements in both directions [meaning it will help both the Ukrainian and European sides],” the Vice-President of the European Commission said.

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