"We need to urgently rearm Europe". This was stated by the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, after the end of a key summit of several European countries plus Canada, held in London and dedicated to European security and the war in Ukraine, reported Agence France-Presse, quoted by BTA.
In front of the media, the President of the EC, who participated in the forum together with the President of the European Council Antonio Costa and with the Secretary General of NATO Mark Rutte, said that “a global plan on how to rearm Europe“ will be presented at a special EU summit on defense on March 6.
Von der Leyen stressed the need to increase defense spending over a sustained period.
Europe urgently needs to rearm and member states must be given the fiscal space to provide the financial means to increase defense spending, von der Leyen said, quoted by Reuters. She added that Europe also needs to show the United States that it is ready to defend democracy.
“After a long period of underinvestment, it is now of utmost importance to increase defense investment over a sustained period,“ the EC President said. “Member states need more fiscal space to make a sharp increase in defense spending,“ she noted.