Germany and 18 other European Union countries on Friday spoke out in favour of expanding arms financing through the European Investment Bank (EIB) days ahead of an EU leaders’ defence meeting.
“By expanding funding mechanisms and employing all available means, we can address the urgent need to grow Europe’s defence industrial and technological base,” leaders wrote in a letter to the EIB, which is the EU’s lending arm.
This would ensure that the defence base could meet both short-term and long-term challenges, they added.
“In light of the ongoing security challenges facing Europe, including Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, it is crucial that we take decisive action to strengthen Europe’s overall defence readiness and capabilities and its defence industrial base.”
EU leaders will meet on Monday in Brussels to discuss how European defence capabilities could be strengthened and how the corresponding funds can be raised.
Some EU countries are also open to taking on new joint debt. Germany, the Netherlands and Austria are opposed to that. Expanding the role of the EIB could ultimately be one of the compromises.
Next to Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Sweden and the Netherlands are are also signatories to the letter.
The EIB has already significantly expanded its activities in the defence sector in the past year and has made more money available for defence projects than ever before.
Investments in security and defence in the community of 27 states were doubled to €1 billion ($1.04 billion) euros in 2024. For 2025, it expects a further doubling of annual investment to €2 billion.
