Kurt Zindulka – September 16, 2021
The European Union needs to build the “political will” to craft an army of its own, President Ursula von der Leyen said in her State of the Union speech on Wednesday.
Addressing the European Parliament in Brussels, the EU Commission chief said that in the wake of President Joe Biden’s disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan, the bloc should look towards the formation of a “European Defence Union”.
“In the last weeks, there have been many discussions on expeditionary forces. On what type and how many we need: battlegroups or EU entry forces. This is no doubt part of the debate – and I believe it will be part of the solution,” von der Leyen said.
“But the more fundamental issue is why this has not worked in the past… What has held us back until now is not just a shortfall of capacity – it is the lack of political will.
“And if we develop this political will, there is a lot that we can do at EU level.”
The former German defense minister argued for a more centralized command structure of the militaries of Europe rather than what she termed as the “fragmented” system in place now, saying: “This is why the EU could consider its own Joint Situational Awareness Centre to fuse all the different pieces of information.”
Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, Germany’s current defence minister, hailed the speech, writing: “Ursula von der Leyen is right… Real EU defence depends on the political will of member states. That’s why Germany and France must lead.”
The speech from the EU President comes amid a growing consensus in Brussels for a fully-fledged EU Army in the wake of Afghanistan.