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Europe News

How can the EU unlock up to €800bn for its ‘rearmament plan’?

The EU Commission has unveiled plans to borrow €150 billion to fund a major rearmament push. This joint borrowing proposal comes in the form of loans rather than grants—an idea largely rejected by so-called 'frugal' countries such as Germany and the Netherlands.

Europe News

EIB set to broaden defence investment scope later this month

The proposal, tabled by the bank's President Nadia Calviño, will be examined on 21 March.

USA

US commitment to NATO 'ironclad', says Trump’s ambassador nominee

Matt Whitaker emphasised that his role would be pushing member states to meet Trump’s demand for increased defence spending, now raised to 5% of GDP.

China

China to boost defence budget by 7.2% to challenge US in Asia

Beijing's increase in military spending reflects an overall slowdown in the economy but keeps pace with the fast-changing trend in defence spending across the world.

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Europe News

Merz secures billion-euro deal for German military and infrastructure

A provision would exempt defence spending above 1% of GDP from debt brake rules, enabling Germany to increase military spending without limit.

Economy

Taxing the rich could help cover increased French defence spending

France is looking at ways to increase its defence budget after the US paused its military aid to Ukraine. The heavily indebted country is not excluding taxing the rich.

Europe News

Commission pitches '€800bn' defence package ahead of leaders' summit

EU leaders will gather in Brussels on Thursday for an extraordinary summit dedicated to defence and Ukraine.

Europe News

Don’t send troops to Ukraine at this stage, says lead MEP

In an interview with Euronews, senior MEP Riho Terras said it's too early to send European troops to Ukraine.

Europe News

The importance of American combat aircraft in Europe

Europe has its own fighter aircraft industry, but many countries also rely on American models. This risks dependency on Washington.

United Kingdom

Belfast factory to supply Ukraine with 5,000 air defence missiles

The move comes as part of the UK's four-point roadmap to 'reach peace and defend Ukraine'.

Markets

European markets kick off week buoyant on defence spending hopes

European defence stocks drove much of the positive market momentum on Monday, boosted by expectations of higher defence spending by several countries like Germany.

Europe News

Europe must do ‘heavy lifting’ on Ukraine at ‘crossroads of history’

Starmer spoke to the press following the summit of Canadian, Turkish and European leaders held at Lancaster House on the future of Ukraine.

Europe News

Italy and UK can build bridges, Italy's Meloni tells Starmer

The Italian premier made the comments after holding talks with the UK's prime minister in London ahead of the summit on European defence and Ukraine.

World News

Can Europe build a credible nuclear deterrent without US support?

France and the UK, Europe's only two nuclear-armed powers, have scaled back their forces since the end of the Cold War, but they are now being called upon to step up.

Europe in Motion

Defence: What does Europe need to protect itself without the US?

A new report says Europe could face a new aggression within the next decade. Here's what it needs to defend itself without the Americans.

Europe News

Turkish FM demands role in new European defence strategy

Ankara is warning that it must be included in future European defence plans, citing its strategic location and military strength, despite challenging relations with both Russia and Europe.

Europe News

‘Skilled workers wanted’: The defence sector struggles to find talent

The EU defence sector is increasingly struggling with finding workers with the skills needed to match the sector needs, industry representatives say – Why? What profiles are they looking for and what is the bloc doing to address the gaps?

United Kingdom

Starmer pledges to raise UK defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027

The UK prime minister committed to a bump in the country's budget for defence ahead of his meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House.

Europe News

Germany’s Merz marks shift by betting on an EU less dependent on US

Friedrich Merz, who led the Christian Democratic Union to victory at the polls, referred to a strong Europe independent of the United States as his “absolute priority”. Many in Brussels now expect a more stable government in Berlin will mean a stronger German leadership

Denmark

Denmark to boost defence spending by €6.7bn over next two years

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said on Wednesday that defence cuts "must never happen again".