Europe dresses in khaki – 400 billion euros from the EU budget will go towards military spending

Europe is changing its policy after Trump's election, directing almost 400 billion euros in community funds to military spending. Arms dealers open champagne.

November 12 “Political and Military Preparation and Readiness Report” continent will be presented to the European Parliament.

The timing of the presentation was not chosen by chance. Following Trump's election to the White House, discussions about strengthening the European defense industry have intensified. A possible US withdrawal from NATO and a reduction or termination of US military assistance to Ukraine increases security challenges and risks EUsay those who call for more money to be allocated to weapons and military infrastructure.

In addition, Trump warned NATO allieswhat, having become president, he will allow Russia to do “whatever she wants”and that it will not guarantee the protection of Atlantic Alliance member countries unless they pay their fair share of defense costs – increasing them to at least 2% of GDP.

Gun industry stocks soar

Arms dealers are popping champagne as European defense stocks surge, Euronews reports. For example, shares of Italian defense company Leonardo SpA jumped 17% after Trump's election, and shares of German weapons manufacturer Rheinmetall jumped 22%.

Investors see opportunities for business expansion as Europe pours money into its war machine.

Hybrid threats

Former Finnish President Sauli Niinistö, author of the report “Civil and Military Preparedness”recommends EU “take a more proactive approach to preparedness and overall security, rather than simply reacting to shock events, as the world becomes increasingly crisis-ridden and less predictable.”

Brussels changes EU spending policy, redirecting up to 1/3 of EU budget to defense spending

The report's recommendations include “improving risk assessment, communicating threats to the general public without causing panic so citizens can prepare (…), strengthening civil-military coordination and joint planning, and expanding intelligence cooperation to improve resistance to hybrid threats.” In his opinion, to achieve these goals it is necessary to increase joint investments.

500 billion investment in defense

The report's recommendations will feed into the agenda of the next European Commission once it is elected, including through the EU's forthcoming European Preparedness Strategy and White Paper on the Future of European Defense.

The European Union is seeking to increase military spending, to its delight “hawks” on the European political scene. The Ninisto report, which received the blessing of Ursula von der Leyen, argues that at least 20% of the EU budget should be allocated to defence, security and crisis management.

In particular, the report says that funds for military spending are not enough either to protect the EU from future risks or to support Ukraine in the long term, and they must be significantly increased. It refers to the European Commission's assessment that, “Based on the strategic framework and identified needs, additional defense investments of approximately €500 billion will be required over the next decade.”

Why does Europe need a lot of weapons?

Brussels is changing EU spending policy to redirect up to a third of the EU's 2021-27 budget to defense spending, according to a Financial Times report. These funds will be taken from cohesion fundswhich are aimed at reducing economic inequality between EU countries.

As noted, the change in policy was dictated by the challenges associated with Trump’s return to the White House and Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Money for weapons from… “cohesion funds”

Of the EU Cohesion Fund funds, which in theory should be of a social nature, only 5% were spent. The biggest beneficiaries, such as Poland, Italy and Spain, spent even less.

According to the current rules, these funds cannot be used to purchase defense equipment or direct financing of the armed forcesbut investments in so-called products “dual purpose”such as drones, are permitted.

EU officials say member state capitals will be told in the coming weeks that they will now take a more flexible approach to rules for distributing cohesion funds to support defense industry and “military mobility” projects such as strengthening roads and bridges to allow tanks to pass safely. Thanks to this trick, money will go directly to the so-called military-industrial complex, approving funding for increased production of weapons and ammunition, even if purchases of weapons using Cohesion Fund funds are prohibited.

It is worth noting that a similar trick has already been used to finance arms supplies to Ukraine, when the source of financing was “Peace Fund”. So if it is possible to finance a war from the Peace Fund, then God himself ordered it from the Cohesion Fund.

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