MIL-OSI Europe: Answer to a written question – Transforming the EU from the defence customer it is today into an industry player – E-002606/2024(ASW)

To address decades of underinvestment in defence in the EU, in March 2024 the Commission and the High Representative/Vice-President presented a European Defence Industrial Strategy[1] proposing a framework to enhance the competitiveness of the European Defence Technological and Industrial Base, notably by incentivising Member States to spend more, better, together and European.

The Commission also presented a proposal for a European Defence Industry Programme (EDIP)[2] to complement the toolbox in support of the defence industry, with a budget of EUR 1.5 billion.

EDIP is meant to be a bridge towards the next multi-annual financial framework, alongside the European Defence Fund[3], keeping on with the intervention logics of the Act in Support of Ammunition Production[4] and the European defence industry reinforcement through common procurement act[5], whilst further incentivising cooperation via novel types of actions.

Also, in line with the Political Guidelines of the President of the Commission, in the first 100 days of the new mandate, the Commission and the High Representative/Vice-President will present a White Paper on the Future of European Defence[6].

Member States are the sole customers of defence systems and decision-makers on procurement of defence systems and their origin. Despite insufficient capacities in light of the current security situation, the EU defence industry still exports a considerable share of its production[7].

Together with Member States, the Commission will amplify its work to ensure that the EU is ready to address the most extreme military contingencies in the upcoming years.

• [1] https://defence-industry-space.ec.europa.eu/eu-defence-industry/edis-our-common-defence-industrial-strategy_en
• [2] https://defence-industry-space.ec.europa.eu/eu-defence-industry/edip-future-defence_en
• [3] https://defence-industry-space.ec.europa.eu/eu-defence-industry/european-defence-fund-edf-official-webpage-european-commission_en
• [4] https://defence-industry-space.ec.europa.eu/eu-defence-industry/asap-boosting-defence-production_en
• [5] https://defence-industry-space.ec.europa.eu/eu-defence-industry/edirpa-addressing-capability-gaps_en
• [6] https://commission.europa.eu/document/download/e6cd4328-673c-4e7a-8683-f63ffb2cf648_en?filename=Political%20Guidelines%202024-2029_EN.pdf
• [7] https://www.asd-europe.org/news-media/facts-figures/defence/