Brussels [Belgium], March 5 (HBTV): European Union (EU) leaders will gather in Brussels on Thursday for a summit that could see member states mobilise up to 800 billion euros to ‘ReArm Europe,’ as proposed by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to ramp up defence spending, Euro News reported.

The summit will include deliberations on defence and Ukraine, according to Euro News on Tuesday.

Von der Leyen proposed the ‘ReArm Europe’ plan, which could see member states mobilise up to 800 billion euros to finance a significant increase in defence spending. The proposal comes hours after Washington suspended all military aid to Ukraine, placing pressure on the bloc to increase its own assistance.

‘We are in an era of re-armament, and Europe is ready to massively boost its defence spending, both to respond to the short-term urgency to act and to support Ukraine, but also to address the long-term need to take on more responsibility for our own European security,’ Euro News quoted von der Leyen as saying.

According to Euro News, von der Leyen outlined five measures in a letter to EU leaders ahead of the summit. This includes a ‘new instrument’ to provide 150 billion euros in loans to member states for joint defence investments in pan-European capabilities, including air and missile defence, artillery systems, missiles and ammunition, drones, and anti-drone systems.

However, von der Leyen did not provide details on how the money would be raised or whether the roughly 90 billion euros in unused funds from the post-COVID recovery package would be included.

The issuance of ‘Eurobonds’ to fund the bloc’s defence needs has so far been strongly opposed by several so-called ‘frugal’ member states, Euro News reported.

The new instrument, von der Leyen wrote in her letter to leaders, would be established under Article 122 of the Treaty on the EU, which allows the bloc to provide financial assistance to a member state facing ‘severe difficulties caused by natural disasters or exceptional occurrences beyond its control’ without requiring approval from the European Parliament.

Notably, the Commission previously used this article during the COVID-19 pandemic to set up the 100 billion euros SURE instrument, for which it turned to financial markets. It was also used to roll out emergency measures to shield European citizens and businesses from the worst effects of the energy crisis.

Another key measure in von der Leyen’s defence package is the activation of the national escape clause of the Stability and Growth Pact. This would allow member states to exclude defence spending from their national expenditures, preventing them from violating the bloc’s fiscal policy, which mandates that government deficits and debt must remain under 3 per cent and 60 per cent of GDP, respectively, Euro News reported.

Von der Leyen claimed that if EU countries increase their defence spending by an average of 1.5 per cent of GDP, 650 billion euros could be freed up over the next four years.

According to Euro News, EU member states have ramped up their defence spending since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. However, spending levels remain uneven, with Poland allocating 4.12 per cent of its GDP to defence last year, while Spain spent just 1.12 per cent.

Negotiations are ongoing among NATO allies—including 23 of the EU’s member states—to raise the defence spending target from its current 2 per cent of GDP level. A decision is expected to be announced at a summit in The Hague in late June.

The other three measures proposed by von der Leyen include allowing member states to make greater use of cohesion policy programmes to boost defence spending, expanding the European Investment Bank’s mandate to finance more defence projects, and accelerating the Savings and Investment Union to enable private banks to invest more in the sector.

Euro News reported that the summit in Brussels on Thursday is also expected to be attended by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

However, divisions remain among EU member states regarding Ukraine, with Hungary’s Viktor Orban and Slovakia’s Robert Fico threatening to veto any call for increased military assistance to the war-torn country.

(ANI)