Industry and EU leaders have poured cold water on Brussels’ ambition to play a more direct role in supporting the European arms industry, questioning the benefits of more intervention and the means to pay for it.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who seeks a second term this year, has recently promoted the idea of using the bloc’s funding to subsidise defence production and to guarantee purchases of weapons — as well as appointing a dedicated commissioner to oversee the new strategy.
But executives and top officials have questioned whether the way forward is to empower the commission, as that strategy risks duplicating existing structures and diverting money to defence companies that could be funded directly by capitals.