According to draft guidelines for European Council conclusions from the Secretariat-General of the Council to Member States’ delegations, dated 29 November, EU leaders could take stock of ongoing work on European defence on 15-16 December.
The European Council would then ask the European Parliament and the Council of the EU to rapidly adopt the legislation on strengthening the European defence industry through joint procurement (EDIRPA) (see EUROPE 12996/5).
It could also call on the Commission and the European Defence Agency to intensify ongoing efforts to identify needs and coordinate joint procurement, in particular to replenish stocks, especially taking into account support to Ukraine (see EUROPE 13051/28).
In addition, the Commission could be asked to come forward quickly with a proposal for a European defence investment programme “to strengthen the capacity and resilience of the European defence industrial and technological sector, including SMEs”.
Heads of State and Government could also call for accelerated implementation of military mobility infrastructure projects (see EUROPE 13061/3) and investment in strategic enablers such as cyber security and space connectivity. Leaders will also call for a strong European cyber defence policy (see EUROPE 13061/2).
They will also reaffirm the importance of the Union’s commitment to support its partners in the field of security and defence, including through instruments such as the ‘European Peace Facility’ and Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) missions and operations, and stress the importance of the transatlantic link.
See the project: https://aeur.eu/f/4dg (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant with Damien Genicot)