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Time has come for EU to take security and defence into its own hands - von der Leyen

head of the European Commission (EC) Ursula von der Leyen

09 February 2025 19:20 (UTC +04:00)

"It is time for the European Union to take the community's security and defense into its own hands," said head of the European Commission (EC) Ursula von der Leyen at a press conference in Lithuania on the occasion of the fact that the Baltic states' power grids were synchronized with the EU after being disconnected from the unified energy system of Belarus, Russia, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia (BRELL), APA reports.

"Beyond protecting infrastructure, it is time - and long overdue - to take our security and defence into our own hands," she said. "NATO remains the backbone of our defence. But it is clear that we need a pan-European defence."

"Modern warfare requires a scale, technology and coordination that is too big for any one country to handle alone," she said. "That's where European cooperation comes into play. We will need funding, both public and private, as we discussed at the European Council earlier this week. We will need more cooperation to improve interoperability and reduce costs," she added.

In addition, she said, the EU needs "simpler legislation, more innovation and a better return on investment in the form of more know-how and good jobs in Europe." "The European Commission is preparing a strategy on the future of European defence, and we will present it to leaders by mid-March," she concluded.