The head of the commission said that Britain could lose the ability to receive weapons from the European Union if war with Russia breaks out, GB News reports.
The European Union’s commissioner for industry has announced plans to put the bloc’s defence industry on a war footing. During a “security crisis”, overseas supplies of weapons and civilian technology could be suspended to make up for a shortfall in EU funds.
It comes as Thierry Breton, the EU’s industry commissioner, announced plans to prepare the bloc for a potential war. He said:
To counter the return of high-intensity war on our border, we have decided to kick up a gear.
According to the commissioner, the Strategy is designed to strengthen Europe’s military support for Ukraine. The European Commission is demanding new legal powers to control military exports in an attempt to block its capital. He added that Brussels was keen to strengthen Europe’s security and reduce dependence on the US. Breton said:
The European Defence Investment Programme has prioritisation measures in it. EDIP contains a fully fledged security of supply pillar that is in it for crisis situations. Once this stage is declared, specific measures can be applied, including priority-rated orders on civilian products or defence products depending on the situation.
Currently, around 40 per cent of weapons and ammunition created in the EU are sent abroad. Josep Borrell, the EU’s chief foreign diplomat, said:
We have a powerful industry of defence because we export a lot. Certainly when there is a big push on demand, which might happen with a war, we have to ask for extra input.
Member states will have to vote on the crisis situation before the export ban is put into effect. According to commission vice-president Margrethe Vestager, EU members have spent more than 100 billion euros on defence since the start of the military conflict in Ukraine.
