An official calls on Europe to be self-sufficient in defence

The CEO of the European Defense Agency has called on EU countries to jointly buy weapons to replenish stocks after resupplying Ukraine, warning that the US may not always be able to protect Europe from threats.

The crisis in Ukraine “shows shortcomings in our capabilities,” said Jiri Sdevi, the agency’s chief executive.

The agency is a European Union body that helps the bloc’s governments develop their military capabilities.

Sadevi added that the agency is in talks with European arms companies to ramp up production, as well as talks with countries to join together to purchase equipment and munitions.
“What’s important is that we, in the European Union, can be trusted to provide security to protect our citizens,” he said, urging countries to heed US calls to invest in defense.
“It is inevitable that the United States will be involved in the Asia-Pacific region and cannot provide some basic capabilities such as strategic airlifts, reconnaissance aircraft, precision-guided missiles and air defenses,” he added.
European defense spending surpassed €200 billion for the first time in 2021, up 6% from a year earlier and the strongest since the region started ramping up military spending in 2015.
A 2020 report from the European Parliament says that without US help, the EU will struggle to defend itself, lacking intelligence, reconnaissance aircraft and medium-range missile defenses, as well as submarines and amphibious vessels.