The European government leaders can sometimes be about the goal: the EU must be a credible defense force in 2030. The leaders can also come to a support to Ukraine – apart from crossbar Hungary. But further? At a new top meeting of the 27 EU leaders in Brussels, it was mainly the mutual dividing lines and cracks that attracted attention.
It was the second EU summit in two weeks. On the first, on March 6, the urge to act dominated by the European Commission’s back armification plans led by Ursula von der Leyen. The speed of then was missing on this edition. With beautiful words about solidarity in a new geopolitric era, the irritations can no longer be lubricated.
Backbang
That was not so much due to Hungary. Viktor Orbán, the Hungarian Prime Minister, has so often been sprayed against that the rest no longer even tried to be comforted to talk to Budapest. Instead, there was a loose, joint support statement that was signed by 26 countries. Two weeks ago that route was also followed: then with some hesitation, now with no more than a shoulder pick up.
The Netherlands was also not the country that went over the tongue in the corridors. Prime Minister Dick Schoof repeated his opposition to forms of financing in which the Netherlands contributes to the defense account of other countries and to extra relaxation of the budget rules. In short: against everything that goes beyond what was agreed at the previous top. “We should not sail together in an accounting discussion,” said Schoof at the start. “But the Netherlands does have a few limits.”
But the backbreed and gossip talk in the corridors of the European Council building in Brussels focused on other countries on Thursday. And in particular: Italy and Spain, suppliers of the resistance against the ‘Plan-Kallas’, an attempt by EU-Buitenland chef Kaja Kallas to encourage countries to put 40 billion on the table this year for KYIV. Kallas wants countries to contribute to that money pot based on the size of their economy.
A number of countries from southern Europe resist this distribution key with hand and tooth. They have provided much less support for three years than the often smaller countries from the north and east of the continent. Of the large countries, only Germany provides a lot of support, France, Spain, Italy and Portugal are less shooty. The Kleine Denmark has so far provided twice as much support as Spain and Italy together.
Pyrenees
The Northern people have been annoyed by the fuel -efficient southern people for three years. Kallas tries to put that right, but she is unable to forget a consensus. Some northern countries think it is best that the south is now being pressed into the dock. The world can then see what those beautiful words are worth about solidarity, says a diplomat.
This Ukraine separation line also signs up in the defense fencing. Some southern politicians make no secret that they feel less threatened by Putin than a country like Poland. “Our threat is not Putin who brings his troops over the Pyrenees,” said Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez last week. He wanted to emphasize that his population is rather struggling with threats from North Africa and the Middle East and threats that result from climate change.
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Sánchez would therefore prefer to see that the new EU stimulation measures for defense can also be used for these threats, as well as for border monitoring and cyber threat. This encounters great resistance, even among countries that have let their economy sailed a bit in recent weeks, such as Germany.
EU president António Costa, who foreseen the consultation, tried to remain optimistic. Two weeks ago the counter was only at 15 billion, he said afterwards, but that can grow quickly. After all, the EU has increased the possibilities for borrowing money for defense investments. Costa counts on the countries that also use space to send more support to Ukraine.
Close definition
Spain and Italy not only protest against the close definition of Defense, but also against the name Rearm Europe that Von der Leyen chose the defense package that must lead to an investment impulse of 800 billion euros. The committee has found something on that. All recent defense plans are now packaged under the motto ‘Preference 2030’.
The Witboek presented this week also falls under that heading for an EU defense policy. In which cyber threats also play a role. The same applies to an action program for disaster relief, which will be presented next week. We started with a close definition, Von der Leyen said at the end of the top, but now use a broader approach.
In the coming weeks, the countries will have to find their way out of the stalemate. They have committed themselves to a Europe that has to make a military giant jump within five years. They also agree that a lot of money is needed for that. But the Netherlands does not worry about loans (Eurobonds) to finance gifts, other than a group of other countries – the committee does not fully exclude this, but calls such a discussion too early. And part of this group in turn lags behind when it comes to struting Ukraine and its own defense budget.
Perhaps, a diplomat from a European country in the margin of the top suggested, it is not a bad idea if some countries choose the flight forward – and the rest should see if they follow.