On the eve of the NATO summit of 25 and 26 May, the College of Commissioners debated the future of European defence on Wednesday 24 May, with the European Commission set to adopt a long-term reflection document on 7 June, listing possible focus areas for the future of European defence.
In addition to this document, the Commission is expected to launch the European Defence Fund, which was announced in the 'European defence action plan' of November 2016. This fund will comprise two axes: a 'research' plank, designed to finance collaborative research in innovative defence technologies, and a 'capability' plank, to allow the member states participating in the fund to acquire certain goods (see EUROPE 11679).
The Commission will also make a proposal to support the development of the defence industry, according to Vice-President Jyrki Katainen (Employment, Growth, Investment and Competitiveness), who said that there would be budgetary announcements regarding the defence sector. He went on to say that there would be another proposal on joint acquisitions, the pooling of assets and joint public procurement. The lack of cooperation between the member state in defence terms costs between €25 and €100 billion every year. 80% of public procurement and more than 90% of research and technology projects are managed at national level. According to the Commission, pooling the acquisition of goods may save up to 30% of annual defence expenditure. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)