Europe Backs Plan For €800bn Defence Spending Hike

In what has been described as a “watershed moment” Europe’s political leaders have endorsed a proposal to increase their collective defence spending by €800 billion (about £670bn).

European Commission (EC) president Ursula von der Leyen presented the plan to European Union (EU) leaders at an emergency summit in Brussels called to demonstrate increased support for Ukraine after U.S. President Donald Trump “paused” American military aid and intelligence sharing.

She described the well-received proposals as “a watershed moment for Europe” and also for Ukraine. All 27 E.U. leaders “firmly supported” the plan with the exception of Hungary’s prime minister Viktor Orbán.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, who attended in person, was hugged by several of the leaders at the start of the meeting, and told his European allies: “We are very thankful that we are not alone.”

The commission’s €800bn plan comprises two parts, and is dependent on each individual state giving the green light to its own tranche of defence spending hikes.

Roughly €650bn in new spending could cumulatively be freed up by the E.U. relaxing its fiscal rules on spending to allow more leeway for borrowing, though it’s not certain that all nations would increase their contributions by the maximum amount theoretically available. Another €150bn could be procured by new loans secured against unspent funds in the existing E.U. budget.

Zelensky has announced that at the start of next week he plans to fly to the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh to meet the crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman. Although the Ukrainian leader will not personally take part in US-Ukraine talks, he said Kyiv was working to reach a "fast and lasting" peace.

“After that, my team will stay in Saudi Arabia to work with our American partners,” he revealed on social media.

• You can read more details of the proposal on the EC website