00:00Muzyka
00:13First it was vaccines, then gas, and now the EU will make joint purchases of defense equipment.
00:20The latest emergency is due to Russians' evasion of Ukraine and possible weakening of U.S. protection in Europe.
00:27To raise the necessary funds, the EU created a new financial instrument.
00:31It's called SAFE, short for Security Action for Europe, and we'll explain it in this EU decodent.
00:38SAFE will have 150 billion euro, which the EU will borrow on the financial markets.
00:44It is one of the pillars of the Readiness 2030 plan, which aims to mobilize 800 billion euro for defense investment by the end of the decade.
00:53The aim is to increase the production capacity of air and anti-missile defense, artillery systems, missiles and ammunition, drones and anti-drone systems,
01:04protection of critical infrastructure, including space, military mobility, cyber, artificial intelligence, and electronic warfare.
01:13Each one of the 27 member states will be able to borrow from this fund, and they can enter into partnerships with other member states.
01:20We'll talk more about those partnerships later, but for now let's hear what Europeans think about more investment in defense.
01:28Jedes Land braucht ein Minimum an Entwicklung, auch auf Rüstungsebene.
01:33Wenn es aber darum geht, jetzt wieder so ein Wettrüsten zu initiieren, dann bin ich nicht dafür.
01:38Ich bin sehr für eine gemeinsame europäische Verteidigungsanstrengung,
01:42Aber die einzelnen Budgets kann man auch in den nationalstaaten lassen.
01:47Und vor allem muss man dafür keine Schulden aufnehmen.
01:49Ich glaube, dass es noch mehr Priorität gibt, auch in Italien, auch in Europa.
01:56Ich bin sehr, ich bin d'accord.
01:59Warum?
02:00Weil wir, praktisch, haben wir nur die Wettbewerden.
02:06Und wir haben den Wettbewerden.
02:08Euronews-Defense reporter Alice Tidy has covered this regulation.
02:15What is the situation with regard to military equipment production in the EU,
02:20and how can the fund play a role?
02:23So, Russia's war in Ukraine and the EU's bid to support Kyiv
02:26has really highlighted the dependencies and the deficiencies of the EU defense industrial base,
02:31and how ill-prepared we were should we be forced into a conventional war.
02:36SAFE is about firing up European weapons manufacturing lines
02:40by getting member states to buy strategically and together
02:43so that the industry becomes less fragmented and quicker to produce
02:49and our armies, more crucially, become more interoperable.
02:53And of course, also it's about putting prices down.
02:56Which countries are showing interest in this fund
02:58and how does it relate to the fiscal deficit limits
03:02imposed by the Stability and Growth Pact?
03:05So, many of the member states who have lower credit ratings
03:08than the Commission may very well be interested in using SAFE.
03:11This is the case of Latvia, for instance,
03:13which has said it wants to use the funds.
03:15So, the EU rules planned for deficits
03:18to not exceed 3% of GDP for each member state.
03:21But this plan is saying,
03:23we're going to allow you to exceed that amount by 1.5% annually,
03:27provided that 1.5% extra spending is only on defence.
03:32About more than half of member states have requested the activation with the Commission.
03:38Usually, these regulations are approved by the Council,
03:42which represents the member states,
03:43and by the European Parliament.
03:45Why this time MEPs were excluded from the process
03:49and how did they react?
03:51So, the Commission decided to invoke Article 122 of the Treaty.
03:56This can only be invoked in case of severe difficulties
03:59in obtaining certain items
04:01or if a member state is seriously threatened
04:04with severe difficulties caused by natural disaster
04:07or by exceptional occurrences beyond its control.
04:10The Legal Affairs Committee of the Parliament
04:12decided, however, that this was not the right strategy
04:16or the right legal basis for this legislation.
04:20And on their recommendation,
04:22Roberta Mazzola, the President of the European Parliament,
04:25wrote to her counterpart in the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen,
04:28saying that they would sue if they didn't change tax.
04:32To receive loans, governments have to meet certain conditions.
04:3565% of the value of each piece of military equipment
04:39must be produced in one of the EU27 member states,
04:43Ukraine and the members of the European Free Trade Association,
04:47Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.
04:49The remaining 35% can also come from any third country around the world.
04:55In the common public procurement part,
04:57EU candidate countries such as the Western Balkans
05:00and third countries that have bilateral security
05:02and defense partnerships like Japan, South Korea
05:06and the United Kingdom can participate.
05:09Our guest is German MEP Marie-Agnes Strach-Zimmermann
05:13from Renew Group,
05:14who chairs the European Parliament, Security and Defense Committee.
05:19This financial instrument, SAFE,
05:21is based on more debt
05:23to be paid off by governments over 45 years.
05:27Is this justified and above all enough to boost European arms production?
05:35So it's a possibility for countries to find money to buy military equipment.
05:43It's not only tanks or rockets.
05:45It's also the question to buy very important things,
05:51hybrid war, cyber war.
05:53So it's a beginning and I think it's a very good sign
05:57and what happens afterwards we will see.
05:59We will still be dependent on imports or partnerships
06:04with other countries, be it Norway, Japan or Korea.
06:08Do you think this is the way to do the transition?
06:11I wouldn't say first Europe,
06:14but it's important if you talk to my colleagues all over the countries,
06:18you know, military equipment,
06:20it's not only a question of security.
06:21Military equipment, it's also, it's a kind of dual use.
06:25It's a kind to develop technological,
06:29really huge things and this is also important for civil things.
06:34So yes, we have to support and we have to boost Europe.
06:36United States President Trump is demanding higher contributions to NATO,
06:41which will be difficult for some member states.
06:45The European Union has now this program, Rearm Europe 2030.
06:49Will it be enough to convince the United States
06:52to keep its support for Europeans' defense?
06:55There is one big player and this is China.
06:58China is an observer.
06:59China will see, are they just talking about freedom and peace
07:06or are they really ready to defend their freedom and peace?
07:10If Ukraine lost this war,
07:12if we are not able to pay more, to do more,
07:14then it's easy to say for China, come on, they are just talking.
07:18And so I think that we have to work together all over the world,
07:23not only here and there.
07:24and I'm optimistic that the President of the United States
07:28will realize what we are now starting to do.
07:32In addition to this financial instrument,
07:35the EU has plans to raise more money.
07:37The European Commission proposed to use the cohesion funds
07:40intended for regional development.
07:42The European Investment Bank will also try to mobilize private money
07:46for the first time for this area.
07:48It remains to be seen whether the European Union will have
07:52the financial capacity to face the new security challenges.
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