Frozen Russian assets can be used by the EU to buy military supplies for Ukraine. Consideration should be given to using their profits for this. This was stated by the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, quoted by Reuters and News.bg.
“It is time to start a conversation about using the windfall from frozen Russian assets to jointly purchase military equipment for Ukraine,” she told the European Parliament.
In his speech, von der Leyen called on the EU to do more on defense policy. “There can be no stronger symbol and no greater use of this money than making Ukraine and all of Europe a safer place to live.”
Von der Leyen stressed that the threat of war for the EU “may not be imminent, but it is not impossible.” “The risks of war should not be exaggerated, but we must prepare for them, and this begins with the urgent need to restore, replenish and modernize the armed forces of the member states,” she said categorically.
Von der Leyen previewed a new European Industrial Defense Strategy that the Commission will present in the coming weeks. According to her, one of the main goals of the strategy will be to give priority to joint public procurement.
“Europe must strive to develop and produce the next generation of combat operational capabilities,” she pointed out. “This means rapidly powering up our defense industrial capacity over the next five years.”
According to her, greater European defense efforts will not reduce the need for the NATO alliance. “In fact, a more sovereign Europe, especially in defense, is key to strengthening NATO,” Von der Leyen pointed out.
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