Leading liberals in European security and defence agreed it is time for Europe to regain control of its security and ramp up defence spending to pave the way for a future where Ukraine can join the European Union and NATO.
Denmark’s Minister of Defence Troels Lund Poulsen (Venstre, DK), Estonia’s Minister of Defence Hanno Pevkur (Reformierakond, EE) and the chair of the European Parliament Committee on Security and Defence Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann MEP (FDP, DE) engaged in a lively discussion at the ALDE Party Council meeting in Helsinki.
Panellists discussed whether the European Union is a player or pawn in the new global order, especially in light of this week’s NATO Summit where Allies committed to investing 5% of their GDP on defence, and exchanged views on the latest situation in Ukraine and the Middle East.
“In the last 30 years, Europe was not interested in being relevant, because being relevant means doing your job. Europe needs to stop being naïve: we have to find a way to talk to each other. Diplomacy is very important but it can only be successful if you have a weapon under your seat. The war in Ukraine is our war, it's an attack on freedom and peace in Europe,” said Strack-Zimmermann.
“We have been doing quite well to support Ukraine, and we should be quite proud about this. Two years ago, Europe was barely able to do anything at all; a lot has happened since, I have been Minister of Defence ever since and a lot has happened. The way forward is to have more enhanced cooperation on buying the needed capabilities and enablers, because we are too dependent on the US. Now it’s time for spending,” said Lund Poulsen.
“When there is a choice between freedom and peace, I choose freedom. But to have freedom you have to invest in it. We have to separate between NATO, which is a defence alliance, and the EU whose main focus is to help member states to provide security. That’s not only defence spending but also police and border protection – that’s where the EU can really step up,” said Pevkur.
You can rewatch the panel debate on YouTube or below.
The ALDE Party Council continues on 28 June, where European liberals will vote on urgency resolutions on current affairs and vote on the accession of potential new ALDE Party members.
Click here for all the pictures from the first day of #ALDECouncil.