At a conference in Brussels, on Wednesday 13 May, Lithuania's Minister of Defence, Robertas Kaunas, said that “the Eastern Flank Watch initiative represents a unique and necessary contribution to European security”.
This initiative is one of four flagship defence projects of common interest to the EU, along with the European Drone Defence Initiative, the European Air Shield and the European Space Shield.
Speaking at a conference in Brussels entitled ‘European Union Defence Initiatives: The Eastern Flank within a 360° Security Approach’, the Minister pointed out that the countries on the Eastern Flank face a direct threat: “Vilnius is one artillery shot away from Russia or Belarus”. So the frontline States must react. “Border surveillance, integrated air and missile defence, anti-drone defence, military mobility and counter-mobility, rapid reception of forces: all these areas are essential and a priority for the surveillance of the Eastern Flank”, emphasised Mr Kaunas.
“This surveillance is guided by urgency and clear deadlines. Our aim is to have our key capabilities operational by 2030”, said the Minister.
But to ensure protection, investment is needed. While the countries in the region have already committed national funds to strengthening this front - Lithuania spends 5.4% of its GDP on defence - “at the same time, increased support at EU level is essential”. “Instruments such as the European Defence Industry Programme (EDIP) and the European Competitiveness Fund, in the next Multiannual Financial Framework, must contribute to its large-scale deployment”, advocated the Minister.
He pointed out that the development of this surveillance will benefit the whole of the EU, with acquisitions throughout the EU, creating numerous jobs and opportunities in all Member States and strengthening supply chains. Ukraine, “the most experienced country in terms of security”, and its industry must also be involved, according to Mr Kaunas.
For his part, the European Commissioner for Defence, Andrius Kubilius of Lithuania, felt that the Eastern Flank region should adopt “a 360 degrees approach to challenges which the region needs to tackle, and in such a way to help the whole of Europe”. He highlighted four areas in which the region should “play a strategic role, produce strategic ideas and be visible with those ideas for the benefit of the region and the whole of the European Union”.
It is first of all necessary to actively participate in the debate on what this new European collective defence architecture should look like. “The Eastern Flank needs to be among the most active players in EU defence industrial policy” and in solutions to the challenges facing European defence, said the Commissioner, who added that the countries of the region should be among the strongest supporters of the development of the European Defence Single Market.
In addition, according to Mr Kubilius, the region needs to think about how to increase and optimise EU support for Ukraine’s defence. “(The region) needs to push for change in the designation of European assistance - it should shift from the goal ‘to support Ukraine as long as it takes’ (support of ‘survival’ of Ukraine) towards the goal ‘to support Ukraine’s Prevailing Plan’, which would allow Ukraine to prevail on frontlines”, he said.
The Commissioner also explained that the creation of a European Defence Union, in which Ukraine would participate, “needs to be the clear geopolitical priority for the Eastern Flank, which should be realised during the Lithuanian Presidency (of the EU Council) in the first half of 2027”.
Finally, the Commissioner stressed that the Eastern Flank should encourage Europe to adopt a coherent long-term strategy towards Russia. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)