Focusing on defense, France and Germany "slightly collide", will the new leadership bring "a breath of fresh air"?

The European Union (EU) summit on June 27 spent much of its time discussing defense issues and nominating the bloc's leadership positions for the new term.

EU leaders pose for a photo with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the first day of the EU Summit in Brussels, Belgium, June 27. (Source: DPA)

On the first day of the summit, which runs until June 28, EU leaders discussed common defense priorities for the 2024-2029 period.

European Commission (EC) President Ursula von der Leyen proposed increasing investment in the development and joint procurement of military equipment, with the aim of reducing the EU's dependence on US weapons and creating an internal market for the European defense industry.

According to AFP news agency, Ms. von der Leyen said that the EU needs to invest 500 billion Euros (equivalent to 535 billion USD) in the next decade to strengthen its defense capabilities.

However, the EC chief did not provide details on the expected costs or how the EU would finance the investment, such as through member states' spending or the issuance of common EU defence bonds.

EU member states have yet to agree on how to finance joint defence projects.

Notably, France supports the idea of ​​using “Eurobonds” to finance defense investments, but some countries, including Germany, oppose the idea.

Meanwhile, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas has proposed a €100 billion defence investment plan financed by joint debt. European Commissioner Thierry Breton also supports the plan.

Although the summit did not make any concrete decisions, it laid the groundwork for closer defense cooperation between EU member states in the years to come.

This is an important step towards enhancing Europe's defense capabilities against increasingly serious security threats.

Except for Ms. Ursula von der Leyen (middle) who was nominated for a second term as President of the EC, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas (right) and former Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa (left) were chosen for the positions of High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and President of the European Council, respectively. (Source: EC)

New staff

A highlight of the first day of the EU Summit was the nomination of the bloc's leadership positions. The leaders of the member states signed an agreement to nominate Ms. Ursula von der Leyen for a second term as President of the EC.

In addition, former Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa was chosen as President of the European Council to replace Mr. Charles Michel, while Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas was nominated to hold the position of High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy to replace Mr. Josep Borrell.

In a social media post, Prime Minister Kallas said EU leaders had given her “a huge responsibility at a time of geopolitical tension”.

“Conflicts in Europe, growing instability in our neighbourhood and globally are the main challenges for European foreign policy,” the Estonian leader wrote.

Meanwhile, Mr. Costa has vowed to work to promote unity among the 27 EU member states. In his new position, the former Portuguese prime minister - a center-left figure - will have to heal the rift between heads of state and government in a Europe divided by the rise of the far right.

Mr Costa expressed his wish to work closely with Ms von der Leyen and Ms Kallas “in a spirit of sincere cooperation between European institutions”.

Both von der Leyen and Kallas will need to be approved by the European Parliament in a secret ballot, while Costa’s nomination only needs the approval of EU leaders. The former Portuguese prime minister will take up his new post on 1 December 2024.

The new leadership line-up represents continuity for the bloc, with moderate pro-EU factions holding top positions despite the rise of the far-right in European Parliament elections earlier this month.

Although all three figures have received widespread support from European leaders, diplomatic sources revealed that Italy's right-wing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni abstained from voting for von der Leyen and voted against Kallas.

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