Is Europe ready for mass rearmament?
Faced with the potential threat from Russia and decreased support from the US, Europe is once again discussing boosting its defence spending. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has proposed softening the EU debt rules for this purpose and Denmark has announced that it will increase its defence spending to more than three percent of its GDP. Most commentators welcome the initiative.
The path to Schengen as the model
Willing EU member states need to show that they still believe in Europe, La Stampa urges:
“Even the European institutions, and in particular the EU Commission, know very well that it's not enough just to spend more money on joint defence: what's needed are also better decisions. When there is no shared vision states have no option but to deciding and acting on a case-by-case basis. ... The Schengen Area is a reminder that starting with just a few is sometimes the best way to achieve a common goal. If there are some governments that are more convinced than others, then they should step up, not to pursue their own ambitions but to at least show that they still believe in Europe. How else are the citizens going to believe in it?”
Investment in long-term resilience
Europe needs to kickstart the defence industry engine, demands Alexandra de Hoop Scheffer, head of the Paris office of the thinktank German Marshall Fund of the United States in Le Monde:
“The member states will not be able to avoid taking on common debt as they did with the post-Covid recovery plan. ... And the EU Commission will have to relax budgetary rules and the stability pact. ... The UK, Poland and Sweden are demonstrating how governments should communicate with their citizens about the investments needed to face future challenges. Europe has everything to gain by ramping up the production capacities of its defence industry: every penny invested in defence research also benefits the digital and energy transition in the long term and thus strengthens our independence and long-term resilience.”
Urgent need for action
The current situation calls for a softening of the strict budgetary policy in Sweden, argues Dagens Nyheter:
“With public debt at an international record low of 31 percent of GDP, both the government and the Social Democrats are sticking to fiscal rules that prevent orderly debt-financed investment in both infrastructure and defence. Government borrowing does not mean that investments are free of charge, either at a national or EU level. But these investments are needed immediately. And if there is no borrowing, tax hikes or radical changes to other welfare programmes will be necessary which jeopardise the entire European economy.”
Expensive and stressful
The Neue Zürcher Zeitung sees Europe's financial stability at risk:
“What does military spending actually mean? Just buying weapons, or also rebuilding old bridges so that tanks can cross them? Unlike infrastructural investments, high military spending does not increase the efficiency of a country's economy. It is just a burden with no immediate return. ... Which is why the member states, despite all the protests, will not be able to avoid scrutinising their entire consumption spending, for example when it comes to education or the pension system. The pension age will have to increase. ... The economy will have to run at full speed in the coming years to finance just the bare essentials. It all looks like more work, not less, unfortunately.”
Danes are united
Berlingske welcomes Denmark's mass rearmament plans:
“This is not to say that criticism does not have its place. Armament raises many questions, perspectives and dilemmas which need to be discussed. ... This makes it vital to critically question the political leadership and their decisions. ... But there is nothing wrong with a political consensus that emerges from an open and genuine dialogue. With so few reasons to be cheerful in the world today, we should be grateful for any small glimpse of hope. The fact that we have a consensus about rearmament in Denmark is one of these.”