Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala attended an informal meeting of EU Heads of State and Government on defence and security in Brussels. The leaders agreed on the need to strengthen European defence capabilities and support the defence industry. They also discussed EU relations with the United States and the United Kingdom and EU-NATO cooperation. For this reason, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte also attended part of the meeting.
The main topic of the summit was strengthening European defence and security. "Europe must take a greater share of responsibility for its security. An increase in defence spending is almost a necessity. We must support the European defence industry, which is very strong in the Czech Republic. This corresponds not only to our security interests, but also to our economic interests. Increased investment in defence helps to strengthen the EU's competitiveness, create jobs, boost the economy and promote innovation potential. At the same time, we need to reduce bureaucracy, simplify joint procurement and strengthen coordination across Europe for military acquisitions." said the Prime Minister.
The members of the European Council welcomed the preparation of the White Paper on the future of European defence, which is to be published by the European Commission in March this year. The White Paper aims to formulate a new EU approach to defence. The issue of financing defence and security should also be part of it. "We fully support making security and defence a priority in the next Multiannual Financial Framework. However, we also consider it essential to further loosen the policy of the European Investment Bank. This should enable the financing of the defence industry and its projects, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises. This should also encourage private banks to invest more in strengthening our defence capabilities," added the Prime Minister.
The EU leaders discussed the EU's relations with the United States, especially in view of the change of leadership of the US administration, which Donald Trump took over again on 20 January this year. "The US is a key partner for Europe and must continue to be so. But Europe must become stronger, both in the security and economic spheres. Just as President Trump will only look after American interests, we must look after ours more. It is in the Czech Republic's interest that the Euro-American bond remains strong so that we can work together. Anything else would mean strengthening our common rivals," pointed out Petr Fiala.
During the lunch with the NATO Secretary General, the statesmen stressed the need for complementarity and strategic unity between the EU and NATO, as well as the need to fulfil their national commitments in the framework of collective defence. "The North Atlantic Alliance has a unique position in European defence. The EU's work in strengthening the security and defence dimension must be fully complementary to NATO. Increasing EU defence investment must reflect the needs of collective defence within NATO to the maximum extent possible," explained the Prime Minister.
The Czech Prime Minister also stressed the need to develop partnerships with our closest partners, which he considers to include the United Kingdom. "The UK is a strategic partner with whom we share common values and attitudes. We support the deepening of our partnership in areas where we have common interests, particularly in defence, security and trade," added Petr Fiala.
Government of the Czech Republic/ gnews - RoZ
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