On 6 March, the European Council, made up of the heads of state and government of the Member States, met for a Special European Council on defence. The conclusions state that “Europe must become more sovereign, more responsible for its own defence and better equipped to act and deal autonomously with immediate and future challenges and threats.” The focus is on a significant increase in Europe's security and defence spending. An agreement was reached on a first list of priority areas for action, such as air and missile defence, and the need for more systematic aggregation of demand, harmonisation of requirements and joint procurement was emphasised.

Ahead of the meeting, in a letter to the member states, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had presented the ReArm Europe Plan, which deals comprehensively with this issue. The corresponding legislative proposal is to be presented in March, ahead of the regular summit of the European Council.

Pillars of the ReArm Europe Plan
The ReArm Europe plan consists of five key elements. The first measure allows member states to temporarily deviate from budgetary requirements to increase their defence spending in the short term by using the escape clause of the Stability and Growth Pact  and thus not having to comply with the strict EU fiscal rules. According to the EU Commission, this could free up to 650 billion Euro in the EU.

A new EU instrument is also to be created, which will provide 150 billion Euro of loans to member states for defence investment, secured by the EU budget and explicitly earmarked for the procurement of goods from European producers. In addition, member states will be able to use part of the unused Cohesion Fund for defence. Furthermore, the STEP Platform could be used to support defence technologies. The EU Commission also wants to rapidly advance the Capital Markets Union respectively the Savings and Investment Union and to involve the European Investment Bank more closely in promoting investment in defence.

Debate in the European Parliament
During the EU Parliament's plenary session on 11 March, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen emphasised that peace in Europe could no longer be taken for granted and that the European security order was in danger. Europe must be able to defend itself better, she said, because the threats are increasing. Von der Leyen is convinced that Europe has the size and economic power to deter and that the political will is now also there. In her statement she emphasised: “This is Europe´s moment, and we must live up to it.”

However, during this session, some MEPs expressed concerns about the EU Commission President's desire to use Article 122 TFEU to approve the ReArm Europe plan, which would exclude the EU Parliament from the democratic decision-making process. They also pointed out the democratic deficits in the excessive use of such emergency provisions. Others warned that increased defence spending should not come at the expense of environmental and social transformation or research and development.

Defensive approaches and prevention
Due to historical developments in Europe, a tradition in the humanitarian aid sector and defensive national security has been established since World War II, particularly in neutral countries such as Austria, Ireland, Malta and Cyprus, which do not belong to any military alliance. There may also be an alternative way to classic rearmament by relying on the use of “peace tech” and defensive defence strategies instead of offensive weapons. The aim is to use modern technologies to protect important infrastructure, to recognise or prevent conflicts at an early stage and to support reconstruction after crises. Furthermore, such technologies can help to manage resources more sustainably, to monitor disarmament agreements and to strengthen disaster protection.

The feminist foreign policy approach argues that security should not be defined in military terms alone, but can also be achieved through the protection of vulnerable groups, conflict prevention and the reduction of structural inequalities. It calls for the greater involvement of women and marginalised groups in decision-making processes in order to critically scrutinise and reshape existing power structures. By focussing on prevention, dialogue and cooperation, this approach offers an alternative to more traditional strategies that are often unilaterally geared towards military solutions. This would enable the development of long-term sustainable and more peaceful solutions that contribute to a more stable international order.

Outlook
Defence will remain at the top of the EU policy agenda. Von der Leyen announced a white paper on the future of European defence due for 19 March, in which the EU Commission will set out which military capabilities the EU should jointly invest in. A proposal for a Defence Omnibus is also to be presented soon.

Further information: 
European Council: Security and defence
European Council: EU Defence in numbers
A&W-Blog: Die zunehmende industrielle Militarisierung in Europa (German only)