EU Member States spent €198 billion on defence in 2020, the highest amount since data started being collected in 2006, a report published on Monday 6 December by the European Defence Agency (EDA) reveals.
This represents a 5% increase compared to 2019 and the highest level ever recorded by the EDA since it began collecting data in 2006. This is the sixth consecutive year of growth. The amount spent represents 1.5% of the GDP of the 26 Member States (except Denmark) of the EDA.
According to the Agency, 19 Member States increased their overall defence spending in 2020, six of them by more than 10%.
Spending also increased on research, development and the acquisition of new equipment. Member States’ defence investments reached the EDA’s record figure of €44 billion, which represents a 5% increase compared to 2019. Defence investment accounts for 20% or more of defence spending in 14 Member States. Only three States spent less than 10%. Of this investment, €36 billion (83%) was used to procure equipment and €8 billion (17%) was used for research and development.
Defence research and technology (R&T) spending amounted to €2.5 billion in 2020, an increase of 46% compared to the previous year.
The Agency’s report also reveals that collaborative investments by governments have decreased. In 2020, Member States spent a total of €4.1 billion on new equipment in cooperation with others, a decrease of 13% compared to 2019. Member States made only 11% of their total equipment purchases in cooperation with other EU Member States in 2020, far from the collective benchmark of 35%, which is a commitment under Permanent Structured Cooperation framework.
See the report: https://bit.ly/31zOsNi (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)