EU Foreign Policy Chief Says Defence Spending Must Rise
(MENAFN- AzerNews)
The European Union's member states need to increase defence
spending to keep pace with the threats facing the continent, its
foreign policy chief has warned, Azernews reports
via BBC.
Kaja Kallas, who served as prime Minister of Estonia until July
2024, said "every euro spent on school, healthcare and welfare
[was] vulnerable" if the bloc didn't maintain strong defences.
US President Donald trump was right to criticise Europe's
spending, which sits at an average of 1.9%, she added.
She also pointed to Russia spending 9% of its gross domestic
product (GDP) on defence and said Europe's expenditure was "clearly
not enough" in light of the war in Ukraine.
"To prevent the war, we need to spend more, that is clear," she
told the BBC World Service's Weekend programme.
Kallas said member states also needed to work together to
"pressure" Russia economically, and hinted at a new sanctions
package next month to mark three years of the war in Ukraine.
The EU needs to be "creative" in terms of limiting Russia's
"ability to wage this war", she said, adding that pressuring
Russian President Vladimir Putin "is the way to end this war
because Putin is the one who started it".
Before taking up the EU post last December, Kallas repeatedly
called for higher levels of defence spending while she was serving
as Estonia's first female prime minister.
In February 2024, she said she wanted Nato countries to increase
defence spending to 3% of their GDP.
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