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Belgian minister Theo Francken warns Europe: 'Everything has to go faster' on defence

Belgian Defence Minister Theo Francken told the Euronews Defence Summit in Brussels that Europe faces a “dark winter” of Russian hybrid attacks and urgently needs stronger air defences, describing Russia as the biggest threat to Belgium’s security.

READ MORE : http://www.euronews.com/2026/09/30/belgian-minister-theo-francken-warns-europe-everything-has-to-go-faster-on-defence

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00:03Belgian Defense Minister Théo Francken has warned Europe must prepare for further Russian hybrid
00:08attacks in the coming month. Francken described Russia as the biggest threat to Belgium's security.
00:13The country has experienced several drone incidents this year, some of which disrupted air traffic.
00:19Russia, air attack, air attack, air attack. So this is the biggest threat. So we need air defense,
00:27air defense, air defense. We need to have more stocks, more production, scale of production,
00:33industrial base, and large industrial base. Francken said Belgium had long under-invested in defense,
00:39but that the country is now stepping up spending. I cannot do it in 18 months,
00:43but has been neglected for 40 years. So yes, we were the worst pupil of NATO class. Now
00:49Belgium is back again, but it takes time. However, Francken said that allocating 5%
00:56of GDP to defense would not be realistic for Belgium in the near term.

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