EU Parliament strengthens defense: Support for Ukraine is growing!

EU Parliament strengthens defense: Support for Ukraine is growing!

Ukraine, Land - On April 2, 2025, the European Parliament accepted a comprehensive resolution to support Ukraine in the indictment points that concern both the common security and defense policy (GSVP) and the common foreign and security policy (GASP). The vote resulted in 399 yes votes, 198 no votes and 71 abstentions, with the majority of Austrian MPs voted for the resolution, with the exception of the FPÖ, which spoke out against it. These measures underline the persistent commitment of the EU to strengthen its defense capacities and to support the sovereign in Europe in a time of increasing geopolitical tensions.

security guarantees and European defense strategy

The GSVP, which is part of the GASP, pursues the goal of promoting a European security and defense culture. Since the beginning of the Ukraine War on February 24, 2022, this strategy has developed rapidly. There is extensive approval within the EU that increased defense and security for all Member States are of central importance. In this context, the EU mobilized more than 11.1 billion euros to support the Ukrainian armed forces. In addition, the EU plans to procure at least 40 % of the defense goods by 2030 at the latest in order to reduce the dependence on third countries.

Supplementary measures for this initiative are the creation of the European peace facility (Eff), which has already been increased to 17 billion euros and financed military GSVP missions and the support of partner countries. This shows the EU's determination of strengthening its defense industry and at the same time investing in scientific and technological progress in order to improve its ability to act.

additional dimensions of EU foreign policy

However, the EU is also faced with challenges, which are caused by the geopolitical changes in global structure. In particular, the role of the United States as a security guarantee for Europe has come under pressure. The new US government has made it clear that it does not want to offer Ukraine security guarantees for European soldiers and that NATO membership of Ukraine is not in prospect. These developments require the EU to re-assess its strategies to increase their ability to act.

In addition to the Ukraine conflict, the EU has also drawn its attention to the increasing tensions in the Middle East. In this context, the Parliament demanded that the EU foreign commissioner Kaja Kallas develop a comprehensive strategy for the region and strengthen the presence of the EU on site. It was also emphasized that the EU coordinates closely with like -minded international partners.

Overall, the decided resolution of the European Parliament shows a clear attitude of the EU compared to aggressive foreign policy tendencies, especially through Russia, and confirms the endeavor to create a strong and uniform European security architecture based on mutual support and cooperation.

Kleine Zeitung reports that ...

Europarl.europa.eu informs about the GSVP

SWP Berlin examines the security policy challenges ...