Sánchez and Díaz will develop a “joint proposal” on defense “in the coming weeks”

Eduardo González The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, assured this Tuesday the second vice president and leader of Sumar, Yolanda Díaz, that the increase in investment in defense up to two percent of GDP before the agreed deadline of 2029 will not affect social spending. For her part, Díaz insisted on the need to move towards European sovereignty to overcome "dependence on NATO and the US" and both agreed to "continue developing a joint proposal in the coming weeks." Pedro Sánchez received Díaz at the Moncloa Complex, at the end of the meeting of the Council of Ministers, to address the situation in Ukraine, European security and the increase in defense spending. The meeting, which lasted around two hours, took place before the round of contacts that the President of the Government will hold this coming Thursday with all the leaders of the parliamentary groups, including the leader of the PP, Alberto Núñez Feijóo. Only Vox is left out, because, in Sánchez's words, "we already have a very clear idea of what Vox's vision is." Socialist sources quoted by various media outlets said that Sánchez insisted during the meeting on the need to reach two percent "as soon as possible" and assured Díaz that this increase in defense will not negatively affect the resources allocated to social spending. "I have met with the president to talk about the Spanish position in the face of European challenges," said Yolanda Díaz through the social network Bluesky. "Europe needs more sovereignty and independence, a comprehensive defense policy that guarantees a fair and lasting peace in Ukraine," she continued. "Our best tool is the Welfare State," she added. According to Sumar in a statement, the meeting concluded without an agreement and with the commitment of both to "continue developing a joint proposal in the coming weeks." During the meeting, Sumar continued, Díaz insisted that the increase in defence spending by the Member States “does not guarantee the overcoming of the problems of coordination and lack of interoperability of the Armed Forces of the different EU countries”, nor does it guarantee “greater strategic autonomy, or greater quotas of shared security”. In the opinion of Yolanda Díaz, “it is essential to advance European sovereignty in order to overcome the dependence in this matter on NATO and the US, and on its military and industrial complex”. Likewise, Sumar defends in her statement the need to advance in a peace project for Ukraine and that the rights of the Ukrainian people and their sovereignty are at the centre of this process. Last Thursday, Pedro Sánchez announced in Brussels that Spain is willing to make the necessary efforts to reach two percent of GDP in defense spending before the initially planned deadline of 2029. Sánchez's announcement took place in the framework of the extraordinary summit of the European Council on Ukraine and defense, in which the heads of State and Government of the EU gave the green light to the 'Rearm Europe' plan, promoted by the European Commission and which foresees up to 800,000 million euros in investment in defense. Sánchez before Congress On the other hand, the Government spokesperson, Pilar Alegría, announced in the press conference after the Council of Ministers that Sánchez will appear at the end of this month before the Congress to report on the European agreements on defense. Likewise, she asked for "prudence and seriousness" when asked how and with what deadlines Spain is going to fulfill its commitment to increase military spending. "It is very complicated to give an answer to so many issues at a time when this issue is being debated in the European Union. “Step by step,” she replied. The spokesperson also assured that “when we talk about an investment at a European level, this will not in any way reduce social spending because this is a key policy for this Government.” Sources from Moncloa specified to the newspaper ‘El Español’ that investment in defence does not count as a deficit, but as a debt, so its increase should not affect social spending. For her part, the general secretary of the PP, Cuca Gamarra, declared to Telecinco that her party will only comment on the increase in spending on Defence when it can “know” Sánchez’s proposal first hand. “Not even the Government itself has a unique position,” she added. Von der Leyen The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, presented her ambitious initiative ‘ReArm Europe’ to the European Parliament on Tuesday, which seeks to mobilise up to 800 billion euros in defence. During her speech, she stressed the need to increase military spending, pointing out that “we currently allocate less than two percent of our GDP to defence and we must exceed three percent”. She also insisted that the majority of these new investments must come from the Member States. The proposal already has the support of the heads of State and Government, after being endorsed at the extraordinary summit on 6 March, where the head of the Community Executive announced that the first specific legislative initiatives will be presented before 20 March. During the debate on the European defence architecture in Parliament, in which the President of the European Council, Antonio Costa, also participated, Von der Leyen stressed the urgency of strengthening the common defence. “It is time to ensure peace through strength and to take responsibility for European defence with determination,” she said. According to Von der Leyen, Russia allocates more resources to its defence than the whole of Europe combined, which is why the continent's arms production must increase significantly. To achieve this, she explained that the 'ReArm Europe' plan will allow Member States to increase their defence spending through the national escape clause. It will also facilitate the mobilisation of up to 150 billion euros in strategic loans through the SAFE instrument and will encourage private investment with the support of the European Investment Bank. Von der Leyen also highlighted the importance of joint arms procurement to strengthen the European defence industry. She concluded her speech by assuring that the time has come to build a European Defence Union that guarantees the continent's security and reaffirmed that Europe will rise to the challenge.

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