With Trump’s Backing Uncertain, Europe Scrambles to Shore Up Its Own Defenses
Steven Erlanger & Jeanna Smialek, New York Times, 03.02.2025
Quotes
European leaders gathered Monday to plot a rough path forward on defense. Wavering support from President Trump is driving the debate. [...]
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine three years ago convinced Europe’s leaders that they needed to spend more money on defense. On Monday, leaders from across the European Union and Britain will meet in Brussels to debate a vexing question: how to pay for it. [...]
Finding a fix that boosts and coordinates European defense outlays will not be easy.
“The logic tells us that you need to have joint procurement,” said Janis Emmanouilidis, director of studies at the European Policy Center. But there are barriers, including a lack of trust between nations and conflicting national self-interest. “It is protecting national industry, it is protecting the sovereign right to make decisions,” he said.
When it comes to joint procurement, there is also the issue of how to finance it. Joint funding programs are clearly on the agenda, but exactly what that could look like varies.
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