The danger of relying too much on the U.S. was highlighted by Trump’s sudden decision to undermine allied Ukraine by halting arms deliveries and intelligence-sharing to pressure Kyiv into accepting peace talks with Russia.
Kallas pointed to how Kyiv has been hampered by relying on outsiders. “They use weapons that are not produced in Ukraine [and] sometimes there are limitations on how they can use those weapons … your military needs to really have free hands in this regard,” she said.
The EU strategy underlined that while the United States is “traditionally a strong ally,” it adds that Washington “believes it is over-committed in Europe and needs to rebalance, reducing its historical role as a primary security guarantor.”
Allocating the money
The most concrete proposal is a Commission pledge to lend up to €150 billion to member countries to be spent on defense under the so-called SAFE instrument.
While the loans will only be available to EU countries, friendly states from outside the bloc may also take part in joint weapons purchases.
Joint procurement under the SAFE proposal is open to Ukraine; EFTA’s Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein; as well as “acceding countries, candidate countries and potential candidates, as well as third countries with whom the [European] Union has entered into a Security and Defence Partnership.”
