Defence Editor for @Rapporteur_news. Ramble in English and French. Views are my own. Drop me a line or tips at [email protected]
Brussels
Joined February 2009
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"Of course, we will defend the kingdom of Denmark," PM Frederiksen said upon arriving at the #NATOSummit, reiterating that Greenland is "not for sale".
Yesterday, Trump said that Greenland “should be controlled by the United States, not by Denmark”.
🚨Breaking🚨: France & Germany have reached an agreement on the governance of KNDS (see statement below)
Need a refresher? @kjeld_neu covered the story weeks ago for @Euractiv euractiv.com/news/germany-ey…
The US today announced a review of its military posture in Europe.
Europe needs to “wait” and “keep a cool head” as the US carries it out, defence ministers said on Thursday, as many questions remain unanswered.
euractiv.com/news/europe-urg…
On the NATO force model and the US removing some assets, Rutte just said that "if war breaks out, clearly what all allies will do, including the US, is to max out" (what they can contribute).
More on that on @Euractiv: euractiv.com/news/not-all-us…
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will attend this afternoon's Ukraine Defence Contact Group meeting at NATO HQ, Sec Gen Mark Rutte just announced
I interviewed @Bpifrance Pascal Lagarde to catch up with what France's investment bank is doing to boost defence production.
He told me about their planned push to bring civilian companies into the defence industrial ecosystem.
👉euractiv.com/news/interview-…
EU defence spending through the bloc’s fiscal flexibility mechanism remains far below the €650 billion increase projected by the European Commission, Economy Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis has acknowledged.
euractiv.com/news/dombrovski…
So the SAFE payments begin.
🛡️ A key milestone for #SAFE.
🇵🇱 Poland has become the first EU country to receive a payment under the Security Action for Europe instrument: €6.6 billion, representing 15% of its total €43.7 billion allocation.
🔗 Learn more: link.europa.eu/TNt9nV
#EUDefence #EUSecurity
This week, I visited the Sēlija training range in Latvia which has now become NATO’s innovation range for uncrewed systems and counter-UAS technologies.
This is my full report 👉: euractiv.com/news/in-latvias…
#NATO could launch a pilot scheme for “innovation badges” as early as September to help allies identify tested defence technologies and speed up procurement, officials said.
Full story 👉: euractiv.com/news/nato-to-ro…
Yesterday I sat down with Latvian President @edgarsrinkevics to talk drone incursions, Eastern Flank and what NATO and the EU should do.
Read some of what he said here: euractiv.com/news/interview-…
Latvia will deploy interceptor drone units, including remotely operated .50-calibre automatic turret guns, to its eastern border within days, according to a senior Latvian military official.
euractiv.com/news/latvia-to-…
Ministers are also talking about the Russian disinfo campaign over the drone incidents there. Here's a good primer on this:
euractiv.com/news/stray-ukra…
'All's well that ends well' for Poland, Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski told reporters as he arrived at a NATO ministerial in Sweden this morning following the US announcement that 5,000 troops would be sent there.
It's not just drones, “long-range capabilities and deep strikes are also among the most important, most valuable lessons Ukraine can share with our partners," the head of #Ukraine’s mission to #NATO told me for @Euractiv
Read the full story 👇:
euractiv.com/news/interview-…
Ace story on from @ilpiotr with this little tidbit:
Preparatory work is already underway, with an EEAS fact-finding mission set to visit Beirut in a matter of days to establish first contacts to set up the new mission, an EU official confirmed exclusively to @Euractiv.
The EU is working on a military mission in Lebanon “radically different” from @UNIFIL_. Blue helmets could give up positions on the #BlueLine, and focus will shift on training LAF to disarm Hezbollah. Rome may retain a leading role.
Details on @Euractiv 👇
euractiv.com/news/eu-eyes-ne…
EU countries that ordered military equipment via the US FMS system are seemingly waking up to the fact Washington can delay and reprioritise deliveries at short notice. The problem: there is no obvious recourse or alternative.
My latest for @Euractiv
euractiv.com/news/europe-app…
France is redeploying its Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier and escort vessels to the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden in order "to expedite the implementation" of its coalition of the willing mission to secure the Strait of Hormuz once the conditions allow.
Brussels welcomed the “clear political signal” from London & said the UK must "commit to providing a fair and proportionate financial contribution to the costs rising from borrowing".
euractiv.com/news/uk-seeks-t…
