Sánchez announces in Brussels that Spain will reach 2% in defense before the planned deadline of 2029

Eduardo González/Ane Barcos The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, announced this Thursday in Brussels that Spain is willing to reach two percent in defense spending before the initially planned deadline of 2029 and assured that this will be communicated to the parliamentary groups next Thursday. “Within the framework of NATO, we reached an agreement with another US administration to reach two percent in 2029,” Sánchez said at the press conference following the extraordinary European Council dedicated to Ukraine and the security and defence of the EU. The relaxation of fiscal rules announced by the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, to encourage defence spending by Member States, he continued, represents an opportunity to “invest more and, above all, invest better” in defence and to make “a common diagnosis of the needs of Europe, not just of each country”. In this context, he continued, “we must all do our homework and make efforts to anticipate what we had set for 2029,” which implies that Spain must reach two percent of GDP before that year, which was the objective set until now. “I will inform the parliamentary groups of this when I meet with them” next Thursday. Before the start of the Council, Pedro Sánchez announced to journalists that, next Thursday, he will call “all the leaders of the parliamentary groups, the head of the opposition and the rest of the parliamentary groups, except for Vox, Vox will not be in the equation because we already have a very clear idea of what Vox's vision is,” to “share information and some reflections and also the positions that the Spanish Government has been maintaining for three years, since the beginning of the war.” Following these statements, the president of the People’s Party, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, urged the head of the Executive to appear in the Cortes Generales before the European Council on March 21 and described Sánchez's decision to leave Vox out of the meeting next Thursday as "apartheid." For his part, the leader of Vox, Santiago Abascal, limited himself to declaring through the social network X that it is an "honor" that Sánchez is going to leave them out of this meeting. Regarding this meeting and how the parliamentary groups will receive his proposal to advance the commitment on defense spending, Sánchez specified that he hopes to "find positive responses, if not one hundred percent, then with nuances," because, regardless of the differences, what unites all the groups ("except one") is "Europe" in a "deeply Europeanist country" such as Spain. On the other hand, the president of the Government did not want to specify deadlines or amounts for this two percent advance. “Right now, European countries and allies are discussing when the two percent will materialize,” he explained. Regarding the different proposals presented this Thursday by Von der Leyen to increase investments in defense, Sánchez especially highlighted the escape clause of the fiscal rules, which “we are going to use all the governments.” Likewise, he warned that Spain does not intend to use the structural cohesion funds for defense spending, because “they are funds for cohesion and territorial and social development,” and demanded that the financial instrument of 150,000 million euros not be based only on loans and include transfers, as was done with the recovery plan after the pandemic. “It is a debate that Spain is going to give,” he assured. Regarding how these transfers can be financed, Sánchez cited the next Multiannual Financial Framework or the contributions of the States. In any case, he assured, “we are going to use it.” “Security and defense are European public goods and as such they have to be financed,” he warned. "It is clear that there must be contributions from the States, because the threats to Poland are not the same as those to Spain, for example, but if they are a European public good, we must create joint instruments to finance this public good," he insisted. Support for the Commission's plan At the extraordinary summit in Brussels, the heads of state and government of the European Union supported the European Commission's plan to strengthen the continent's defence and facilitate the increase in military spending by the Member States. Von der Leyen, for her part, announced that the detailed legislative proposals will arrive before 20 March. Coinciding with the announcement by the President of the United States, Donald Trump, on the suspension of the delivery of military aid to kyiv, the President of the European Commission presented ReArm Europe, a programme designed to increase investment in defence, with a forecast of up to 800 billion euros. This initiative seeks to grant greater fiscal capacity to the Member States and contemplates the granting of loans worth 150 billion euros to strengthen their military capabilities. The European Council on Thursday backed the initiative, urging EU finance ministers to examine the proposal as a matter of urgency. In their conclusions, the Twenty-Seven backed the Commission's intention to recommend the coordinated activation of the national escape clause under the Stability and Growth Pact, a measure that would allow Member States additional fiscal space to undertake significant defence spending, while ensuring debt sustainability. They also urged the Commission to explore new sources of defence funding at EU level, ensuring that any measures adopted are based on the principles of objectivity, non-discrimination and equal treatment between Member States. “Our decisions today send a clear message,” said Council President António Costa after the meeting: “We are delivering on what we have promised and we are living up to our promises.” Von der Leyen, for her part, announced that the European Commission will present, before the ordinary European Council in March, scheduled for 20 and 21, the detailed legislative proposals of its plan to equip the bloc with the military capabilities necessary to face current threats. “The urgency is very real,” she stressed. On 19 March, Brussels will also present the White Paper on Defence together with a new omnibus simplification package. Zelensky calls for speeding up Ukraine's accession to EU At the summit, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called on European leaders to allocate a significant part of the funds from the ReArm Europe plan to the production of weapons in his country. He argued that the Ukrainian defense industry is the fastest and most efficient in dealing with current threats, and that strengthening its capacity would benefit the whole of Europe. “Ukraine's industrial capabilities are the most suitable to respond to security challenges,” he stressed. Zelensky also supported increased defense spending and the modernization of European armies, insisting that Europe must develop its own military industry to produce advanced weapons. “Europe should become the epicenter of manufacturing the most effective weapons in the world,” he said. The Ukrainian leader criticized the stagnation in negotiations on his country's accession to the European Union, denouncing that there are no justified reasons for the blockage. “It is essential to unblock this process at the leadership level,” he said, urging the Twenty-Seven to speed up the talks. He thanked them for their support and stressed European unity in an increasingly uncertain geopolitical context. During the summit, Zelensky held bilateral meetings with several European leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron, whom he thanked for his strong support for Ukraine. Both discussed the need to adopt new security measures and coordinated strategies for the meeting on March 11, when several countries will discuss strengthening European defence. “We share the vision that a real and lasting peace will only be possible with cooperation between Ukraine, Europe and the United States,” he concluded. Hungary distances itself from the conclusions on Ukraine The conclusions of the special summit on Ukraine were adopted by 26 of the 27 member states, due to the reluctance of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. As a result, the references to Kyiv were included in an “adjunct text” that was unanimously supported by the other countries. Regarding Hungary’s abstention, Costa noted that “an isolated country does not create division,” assuring that the other member states “remain united in a common position and would continue to support Ukraine as we have done from day one.” The 26 supported the “constant and unwavering” commitment to the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders. They also stressed the need to achieve a comprehensive, fair and lasting peace, based on the principles of the United Nations Charter and international law. In this context, the member states that supported the declaration emphasized that any peace negotiations must have the active participation of Europe and Ukraine. The bloc also reaffirmed its commitment to continue supporting Ukraine in coordination with partners and allies, providing political, financial, economic, humanitarian, military and diplomatic assistance. They also advocated intensifying pressure on Russia. The Council also urged the Commission, Slovakia and Ukraine to step up their efforts to find viable solutions to gas transit, taking into account the concerns raised by the Slovak Government.

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