{"id":123287,"date":"2025-07-23T10:45:01","date_gmt":"2025-07-23T08:45:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thediplomatinspain.com\/?p=123287"},"modified":"2025-07-23T10:45:36","modified_gmt":"2025-07-23T08:45:36","slug":"european-defence-commissioner-asks-u-s-for-clarity-what-will-you-withdraw-when-and-how-will-it-be-replaced","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thediplomatinspain.com\/en\/2025\/07\/23\/european-defence-commissioner-asks-u-s-for-clarity-what-will-you-withdraw-when-and-how-will-it-be-replaced\/","title":{"rendered":"European Defence Commissioner asks U.S. for clarity: \u201cWhat will you withdraw, when, and how will it be replaced?\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"
By Mar\u00eda Luque<\/a>, Founding Partner at Future Literacy Group<\/h6>\n

Under the spotlight of the Gallup Building in Washington, and flanked by leaders from Lockheed Martin, Airbus, and the EIB Group, Andrius Kubilius made history as the first European Commissioner for Defence to speak on U.S. soil.<\/strong><\/p>\n

He did so during a new edition of the EU Defense Night<\/a>, the annual event organized by the European Union Delegation to the United States to showcase the EU\u2019s growing role in defence. The gathering brings together high-level officials, defence industry executives, policy experts, and media representatives from both sides of the Atlantic \u2014including Escudo Digital.<\/p>\n

With a calm yet surgical tone, Kubilius used his keynote speech to lay out Europe\u2019s new strategic roadmap: self-defence, massive investment, and industrial independence<\/strong> in the face of what he called a \u201cclear and present danger\u201d from the Kremlin.<\/p>\n

\u201cI came here to say, first of all, that Europe is preparing to take responsibility for its own defence.<\/strong> You asked us to do that [Americans]. And we\u2019re finally moving in that direction,\u201d he began, while acknowledging: \u201cYou, the Americans, clearly have the right \u2014and the long-term strategic logic\u2014 to pivot more and more towards the Indo-Pacific, in order to counter the growing military power of China.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cAnd you have the right to ask us to take on responsibility for Europe\u2019s defence. And we, the Europeans, must accept that U.S. position as logical. That\u2019s why we need to draw our own logical conclusion: we must be prepared to assume that responsibility, especially when we see that the Russians are becoming increasingly aggressive,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Europe no longer just asks for protection<\/h4>\n

European defence has crossed the Rubicon \u2014backed by unprecedented figures: up to 5% of Member States\u2019 GDP<\/strong> will be allocated to defence in the new 2028\u20132035 budgetary cycle, amounting to as much as $5 trillion in cumulative spending<\/strong>. At least $2 trillion of that will go directly to military equipment<\/strong> \u2014a figure with which the EU hopes to counter the continent\u2019s most pressing threats, especially that posed by Russia.<\/p>\n

\u201cPutin is a clear and present danger. Russia produces more ammunition in three months than all of NATO does in a year, including the United States. We can\u2019t keep depending on you,<\/strong>\u201d Kubilius admitted to the well-attended U.S. audience, before warning of the major global risks posed by Moscow and Beijing by 2027.<\/p>\n

\u201cEuropean intelligence services have publicly stated that Russia could be ready to challenge NATO within three to five years. Germany\u2019s intelligence service recently said it has evidence \u2014not just forecasts\u2014 that the Kremlin is actively discussing such plans. A stark warning also came last week from U.S. European Command and NATO\u2019s Allied Command Europe. General Alexis Greenkevich said the alliance must prepare for the possibility of Russia and China launching wars in Europe and the Pacific simultaneously, with 2027 as a potential flashpoint.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

From the legacy of D-Day to structural self-defence<\/h4>\n

The event also honoured a World War II veteran \u2014Dr. Arlester Brown<\/strong>\u2014 and the symbolism was clear: from the legacy of D-Day to structural self-defence.<\/strong> The private sector\u2019s presence was equally significant. Representatives from Palantir, Rheinmetall, Lockheed, and Helsing were present for a direct message: the European defence business is about to multiply, but it won\u2019t be an open door without conditions.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cEuropean industries are already marketing their products as ITAR-free, like they were sugar-free sodas,\u201d Kubilius quipped, referring to the U.S. regulations that restrict the export and use of military components involving American technology.<\/p>\n

This was no offhand remark. ITAR regulation has become one of the main obstacles to transatlantic industrial interoperability. According to Kubilius, Europe currently spends 40% of its defence budget in the U.S., while the U.S. buys barely 1% from Europe.<\/strong> \u201cThere\u2019s no reason to complain if we invest in our own industry. The current asymmetry is unsustainable,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n