European armaments industry is demanding from the Leyen: USA weapons allowed!

European armaments industry is demanding from the Leyen: USA weapons allowed!

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has made it clear that the purchase of US weapons is still in order under the new framework conditions associated with Donald Trump's presidency. This expressed this on April 15, 2025 and emphasized that the EU is planning extensive measures for upgrading over the next few years. These measures also include the mobilization of a total of 800 billion euros to strengthen the defense industry in Europe.

A central concern of Von der Leyen is the establishment of a European armaments industry that benefits the European taxpayers and the labor market. The majority of the current military material that is procured by EU member states comes from abroad. This not only promotes jobs, but also research and development outside of Europe, which the Leyen sees as problematic. It therefore calls for growing military production within Europe, including American companies that produce and develop in Europe.

strategic orientation and investments

The EU Commission led by Leyen is working on a strategy for the defense industry, which is based on the experience of vaccine procurement during the Covid 19 pandemic and the common energy purchases. This is to overcome a fragmented defense market in Europe. It is planned that a package of measures for strengthening the military-industrial complex in Europe will be published in February 2024.

In the context of EU defense, NATO general secretary Jens Stoltenberg announced that the European NATO members will achieve record spending of a total of $ 380 billion for armor in 2024. These expenses are a sign of growing commitment in defense compared to 2023, when military expenses rose by 11 percent.

economic impulses through defense investments

According to a study by EY and Dekabank, European NATO countries invested in armor in 2023 annually in armor in 2023, securing 680,000 jobs. An increase in these expenses to 3 percent of GDP could generate another 65 billion euros per year and an additional 660,000 jobs. These are significant economic impulses that could also result in positive spillover effects in research and development.

The need to increase the defense investments is in the room, since many NATO member states have already reached the 2 percent specification. A discussion about an increase to 3 percent takes shape, continued by the tense security situation in Europe. The study shows that every euro in defense can double economic activity, which makes the sector particularly attractive.

from the Leyen also sees the urgency of building new production capacities in the armaments industry. It is predicted that future defense investments could lead to sales of 577 billion euros, here 430 billion euros in military equipment. Rheinmetall and other German armaments companies in this context urge to consolidate the European military sector in order to be able to exist in global competition.

Finally, the Leyen demands more, better and European investments in the defense industry. In doing so, it underlines the need for a strong European basis in order to become both economically and strategically independent from the outside.

For more information, visit the articles at Austria, Tagesschau and the EY Study .